EuropeActive Highlights - May 2024

01

EVENTS

EUROPEACTIVE EVENTS IN 2024

EUROPEAN HEALTH AND FITNESS

MARKET REPORT 2024

03

EDUCATIONAL SERVICES

TRAINING PROVIDER FORUM 2024

THINK ACTIVE: LATEST UPDATES

02 EU AFFAIRS

HL4EU COALITION LAUNCHES ITS CALL FOR ACTION

#BEACTIVE DAY 2024: PROJECT WORKSHOP IN RIGA

04 MEMBERS

NAS IN THE SPOTLIGHT: SERBIAN ASSOCIATION FOR RECREATION AND FITNESS

FRISKVÅRDSFÖRETAGEN BECOMES ACTIVE SWEDEN

PERFECTGYM JOINS SPORT ALLIANCE DON ´ T MISS THESE HEADLINES!

AREYOUREADYFOR4DAYSOFWELLNESS?

RiminiWellness is an event that brings together under one roof all the major players in the fitness and wellness universe

Exercise equipment manufacturers, gyms, fitness clubs, training institutions and trade associations, medical spas, health centers, rehabilitation, tourism and design, always with an eye on what the fitness community wants.

REQUESTYOURCOMPLIMENTARYTICKETONTHISLINK!

6SECTIONSALLTOGETHERON1BIGSTAGE

A unique mix of events that blend every spirit of the good life and staying in shape, a winning combination with six sections:

STEEL: Nutrition, physical culture and combat sports

ACTIVE: An interactive and energetic audience

FITNESS: The marketplace in Italy dedicated to fitness

WELLNESS: All-round body care and wellness

HEALTH: Health: training, updates and trends

FOODWELL: Healthy nutrition for those ' on the go '

FACTS&FIGURES2023

+ 93% VISITS COMPARE TO 2022 EDITION

10APRIL2024

Cologne, Germany

29-31 OCTOBER 2024

Milan, Italy

NH Collection Milano Touring

Sponsors: FIBO, PerfectGym, Technogym

23SEPTEMBER2024

Across Europe/ Our National Association Countries

Coalition launches its Call for Action

HL4EUCOALITIONLAUNCHES ITSCALLFORACTION:

Enabling Cross-Sectoral Approaches for Healthy Lifestyles in Europe

On 17 May 2024, the team behind the Healthy Lifestyles for Europe (HL4EU) project, coordinated by EuropeActive, published its Call for Action on "Enabling Cross-Sectoral Approaches for Healthy Lifestyles in Europe". All committed stakeholders, whether individuals or organisations, are invited to endorse the Call HERE, to show support for advancing more comprehensive crosssectoral approaches to healthy lifestyles access and promotion, with increased levels of physical activity at its core.

CALLFORACTION

In its Call for Action, the HL4EU coalition paints a grim picture of the rising NCD rates which have devastating consequences for individuals and their quality of life, European healthcare systems, and society at large NCDs are the leading cause of mortality in Europe where they account for 90% of all deaths and 80% of the health burden Premature mortality from NCDs results in a loss of €115 billion per year to the economy (0 8% of GDP), with further losses incurred due to lower productivity, employment rates, and disability. Moreover, the burden of NCDs on life quality and well-being of those living with them, their families, and caregivers should not be underestimated

In this context, the coalition highlights the significant benefits, and cost-effectiveness, of physical activity for improved NCD prevention, management, and care. The group calls on the European Union to step up efforts to address NCDs and its risk factors, improve people’s quality of life and build a strong and resilient European Health Union by enabling and fostering greater cross-sectoral approaches to healthy lifestyles Interdisciplinary research highlights the interconnectedness of social, economic, and environmental factors in shaping health outcomes Therefore, addressing the complex determinants of health requires a holistic approach that transcends traditional boundaries and embraces collaboration across sectors

KEYDEMANDS

The Call for Action highlights the following demands:

For more information or to endorse the Call for Action, please visit our website:

COMMUNITYBUILDINGCONFERENCE

The HL4EU coalition invites all interested stakeholders to Save the Date - Tuesday 5 November 2024Brussels for the Community Building Conference which will gather the supporters of the Call for Action and focus on the reality of using physical activity across different sectors, and what the project is striving to accomplish The HL4EU project is co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union.

EUAFFAIRS

Over April 29th and 30th, #BEACTIVE DAY 2024 project partners convened in Riga (Latvia) for a two-day Campaign Workshop. Hosted by the Latvian Health and Fitness Association (LVFA), the meeting brought together project partners from Austria, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Ireland, Latvia, Romania, Slovenia and the Netherlands, to work on maximising the impact of this year ’ s upcoming campaign

The workshop kicked off with a warm welcome from Gints Kuznecovs, president of LVFA, and Anna Miskovicová, EuropeActive’s campaign officer. They highlighted the campaign's success and the growing momentum of #BEACTIVE DAY, which in its past edition saw 5,524 events organised across 24 countries and growing recognition from the European Commission

The gathering provided an opportunity for fitness stakeholders from the LVFA network to be present, creating an exciting chance to network and exchange good practices and insights from other countries Karolina Nováková from Česká komora fitness (CKF) and Deirdre Marley from Ireland Active shared success stories from their organisations. Later, Dāvis Mārtiņš Daugavietis, Head of the Latvian Saeima Subcommittee on Sport, joined the participants for an ganging Q&A session with fitness stakeholders in the room

An exciting collaboration with Morla Moves, a company that enhances fitness experience through AI and computer vision technology, was further revealed. Morla Moves provides realtime correction during exercises by mapping key points on participants' bodies, offering instant feedback aligned with trainer guidance This AI technology tailors a personalised digital fitness experience, tracking progress and offering detailed statistics and analytics to measure improvements in flexibility, correct reps, and form maintenance

The meeting provided an opportunity for partners to delve deeper into this year ’ s campaign focuses: empowering individuals with disabilities - perpetuating the ongoing mission of dismantling barriers hindering physical activity and healthy lifestyles – and enhancing environmental sustainability in #BEACTIVE DAY 2024 campaign events.

The sustainability session was led by Luis Monteiro from the European Network of Outdoor Sports (ENOS) Emphasising the critical intersection between physical activities and climate action, highlighting the carbon footprint associated with events, a roadmap for sustainability was outlined, stressing the importance of planning, execution, and post-event evaluation.

The Inclusion session was provided by Gunta Anca, Vice President of the European Disability Forum and President of The Latvian Umbrella Body for Disability Organizations – SUSTENTO SUSTENTO's mission is to uphold human rights and prevent discrimination, emphasising the importance of addressing societal barriers, equipping it with the required expertise to further highligh the critical need for accessibility to physical activities and healthy lifestyles for people with disabilities.

EUAFFAIRS

Project partners actively participated in both sessions, sharing insights from their respective countries, acknowledging varying levels of awareness and around these topics. Differences among countries were noted, with some benefitting from greater stakeholder proactivity and higher general public awareness, along with greater state support, especially in the sustainability sphere. Despite these challenges, there were notable examples of efforts to boost accessibility and sustainability, including collaborations between disability organisations and gym clubs. The former session emphasised the feasibility and effectiveness of implementing easy-to-adopt sustainability measures, while both sessions concluded on the importance of proactively embracing sustainability and accessibility through incremental steps.

This initial work will gain further momentum over the first half of summer when, notably thanks to our experts, both guides will be finalised and published Instrumental in expanding the reach and impact of the European Week of Sport and #BEACTIVE DAY, the guides will support stakeholders to steer away from generic, one-size-fits-all approaches and embrace tailored strategies. Stay tuned!

The meeting concluded with an interactive peer learning session enabling participants to exchange ideas on creating inclusive events, reducing environmental footprint, and implementing successful campaigns and enhancing participants’ engagement.

To round off the experience, LVFA organised exciting activities to discover the beautiful city of Riga and its fitness centres. The itinerary included a city tour, an elegant networking dinner and several gym visits, such as Squad Hour, Lemon Gym SKANSTE, and My Fitness Alfa. The group also had the opportunity to conclude the programme with an energising group workout at Sports Centre Jugla, one of the most active organisers of the #BEACTIVE DAY 2023 campaign!

The EuropeActive Training Provider Forum (TPF) is returning this year on Thursday, June 20th, in an online format. We are thrilled to extend this opportunity to all our accredited providers, making it accessible no matter where you are based.

THURSDAY, JUNE 20TH 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM CET ZOOM

LATEST UPDATES

THE THINK ACTIVE INTERNATIONAL CONSENSUS ON SOCIAL RETURN OF INVESTMENT MODELING FOR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND SPORTS PARTICIPATION PROJECT

STRIVING FOR GLOBAL CONSENSUS ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC VALUE OF SPORT AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

THiNK Active is excited to announce significant progress on our flagship project: the International Consensus on Social Return of Investment (SROI) modeling for physical activity and sports participation. This ambitious initiative, which began in October 2022, aims to deliver high-quality and robust evidence demonstrating the positive contributions of sport and physical activity to society across the EU and globally.

A PAN-EUROPEAN SOCIAL VALUE CALCULATOR

Our primary objective is to integrate a Social Value Calculator into the European DataHub (EDH). This tool will be pan-European and adaptable to diverse socio-economic contexts and populations. The current EDH calculations, based on a model designed for leisure trusts in the United Kingdom, have limitations that we aim to overcome As articulated in our previous key report (Jimenez et al , 2023):

There is a growing demand globally, for policy makers, practitioners, and academicstomeasurethebroadbenefitsofsportandphysicalactivityatthe individual, community, and population level. Whilst some benefits of physical activityandsporthavebeenevidencedthroughresearch,oftenthesebenefits have focused on physical health, with limited high-quality evidence on the wellbeing and social benefits quantified at scale This is due to significant researchgapsbutalsoduetoalackofglobalconsistencyofwhatbenefitsto assess and a lack of robust tools and methods to accurately measure associated outcomes. In response to the growing need to advocate for the broadbenefitsofSportandPhysicalActivity,weurgentlyneedtounderstand thesocialbenefitsandvalueofparticipation.

(Jiménezetal.,2023).

KEY MILESTONES ACHIEVED

Since the project's inception, we have accomplished several critical milestones:

Delphi Study Completion: We conducted a Delphi study with over 100 experts worldwide. Technical Experts’ Workshops: We hosted three workshops at Sheffield Hallam University (February 2023), WHO Headquarters in Geneva (April 2023), and King Juan Carlos University in Madrid (November 2023).

Conference Presentations: We presented our findings at three international conferences: the International Society for Physical Activity & Health Congress in Abu-Dhabi (October 2022), the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting in Denver (June 2023), and the Exercise for Health Summit in Madrid (November 2023).

Research Topic Launch: We launched a monographic research topic in the Frontiers in Sports & Active Living journal titled “Understanding and Assessing the Social Value of Sport and Physical Activity” (https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/49217/understandingand-assessing-the-social-value-of-sport-and-physical-activity/overview)

FORMAL OUTPUTS AND PUBLICATIONS

We are proud to announce the publication of our first scientific paper:

Nieto, I., Mayo, X., Davies, L., Reece, L., Stafford, B. W., Jimenez, A. (2024). Consensus on a Social Return on Investment model of Physical Activity and Sport: A Delphi study protocol Frontiers in Sports & Active Living, Vol 6 doi: 10 3389/fspor 2024 1334805

Additionally, we have four more papers currently under review:

Striving for Global Consensus: A systematic review of Social Return on Investment applied to physical activity and sport. Under review at the Journal of Physical Activity & Health

Consensus on a Social Return on Investment model of Physical Activity and Sport: A Delphi study. Under review at the Journal of Sport Science.

Social value framing of physical activity in European member state policies: A content analysis. Under review at Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, section Sports Politics, Policy, and Law

A pilot implementation of the SROI model to physical activity, sports, and recreation programs in Bogota: Social impact on health outcomes. Under review at the Cities & Health Journal

LOOKING FORWARD

As we move into Phase 2 of this project, we remain committed to advancing our understanding of the social and economic value of sport and physical activity. Our goal is to develop robust, globally applicable tools and methodologies that will enable policymakers, practitioners, and researchers to advocate effectively for the broad benefits of sport and physical activity

NAS IN THE SPOTLIGHT:

Article provided by The Serbian Association for Recreation and Fitness

The Serbian Association for Recreation and Fitness - SARF, as the official national branch association, is a center of the fitness industry in Serbia that gathers: representatives of clubs, trainers and instructors, manufacturers and distributors of exercise equipment, supplements, software solutions companies and other fitness industry companies, higher education institutions… It counts near 400 clubs from all over Serbia.

The main goal of the association is to popularize fitness, recreation, exercise, as well as healthy lifestyles in general, both for individuals and families, in order to create preconditions for a healthy and quality life of all citizens. All categories of citizens are included in our projects: children, students, employees, pensioners. This task of the association is especially evident in cities, urban areas, where people are exposed to a sedentary lifestyle, without much contact with nature.

During the year SARF organizes numerous events. In addition to schooling fitness trainers (equivalent to EQF level 3 and 4) and major educational events (European Fitness Congress, Fit Spot – Regional fitness congress)we also organize seminars and workshops on various topics (entrepreneurship, digitalization, training, nutrition, management...). Closely related to the educational segment is the fact that SARF issues licenses for work in the field of recreation and fitness. We organize trail races in seven places across Serbia (Beograd, Vršac, Novi Pazar, Golija, Smederevo, Katići, Zlatibor) in which a large number of recreational athletes participate However, the biggest event we organize during the year is the fitness & health expo BELFIS

Co-operation with national associations, especially with the German Fitness Association (DSSV), contributed to adopting and transposing the European standards in the field of fitness Thanks to partnerships with international fairs RiminiWellness, SARF organises trip to this international fitness fair.

Since 2010, the Association has been publishing the magazine Fitness Management International - a specialised licensed magazine. It is intended for an audience for which a healthy life and recreation is a way of life: club owners, coaches and instructors, students of the Faculty of Physical Education, but also all those for whom exercise and fitness are an everyday need and pleasure.

NOTABLERESULTS

#BEACTIVEDAY

For successful work and notable results in the field of fitness and recreational sports, the Serbian Association for Recreation and Fitness and the magazine Fitness Management International have established annual awards in several categories: Fitness Club of the Year, Fitness Person of the Year in three categories (best fitness trainer, best group instructor, best manager), Fitness studio of the year, Best new club, Best hotel fitness…

Thanks to the cooperation with Europe Active, SARF has been participating in the organization of the event #BEACTIVE DAY since last year. For the first time, we had 69 events in 23 cities with 5462 participants.

Press Release provided by Active Sweden

After 21 years as Friskvårdsföretagen, it is now becoming Active Sweden. The name change marks a fresh start for the organisation.

During the new industry event Perforum, Friskvårdsföretagen unveiled its new name today – Active Sweden. With the new name, the organization aims to bring together the entire industry and highlight the value of movement for everyone

"The name change marks the beginning of a new era for the industry and our members We look forward to reaching even more people and contributing to making exercise a part of everyday life for all age groups. Lifestyle issues and the value of physical activity and movement are crucial issues for the future, " says Katarina Andersson, chairperson of Active Sweden

Relativt Kommunikationsbyrå developed the name and logo The design is intended to reflect the role of exercise in Sweden.

"This was an inspiring assignment to work on. We wanted to create a name and brand that works well in an international context while maintaining a strong national identity. The logo is designed as a visual puzzle The roof of the 'T' in the word Active is lowered to form the Swedish flag in yellow

Sport Alliance, a Hamburg-based provider of innovative software solutions and services to gyms and fitness suites, today announces the acquisition of PerfectGym, the international software provider to fitness and leisure businesses.

With the acquisition of PerfectGym, Sport Alliance strengthens its team and international capabilities and further enhances its ability to bring digital innovation to fitness and leisure facilities globally

Together, the new entity represents the premier software provider for top fitness chains including servicing 14 out of Europe’s top 30 chains. It is also the market leader among leisure centers in Australia and services customers in over 130 international chains in more than 55 countries, spearheading the digital transformation of over 10,000 sports facilities globally

“We welcome PerfectGym into the Sport Alliance group This is a significant milestone in supporting the fitness industry worldwide on its path towards further digitization. Sebastian and his team bring valuable international expertise and incredible motivation to the group; we are very much looking forward to the journey ahead, " says Daniel Hanelt, CEO of Sport Alliance.

"PerfectGym has always been committed to shaping the fitness industry and providing leading solutions to enterprise customers and complex sports facilities. In Sport Alliance we have found a partner for growth who shares our mission, and we are eager to continue to expand together, " says Sebastian Szałachowski, CEO of PerfectGym.

The acquisition was supported and backed by PSG Equity, which has been an investor in Sport Alliance since 2021.

Press Release provided by Perfect Gym

01

02

CHECK OUT OUR MEMBERS' TOP STORIES FROM THIS MONTH!

PureGym hits the 2 million member milestone and targets 200 more...

EGYM Uses AI To Create Dynamic Workout Plans at Scale

Xplor Capital launches in the US to help small businesses access funding

communications@europeactive.eu

EuropeActive

House of Sport Avenue des Arts / Kunstlaan 43, B-1040 Brussels, Belgium

Have any questions? communications@europeactive.eu

www.europeactive.eu