Latvian Sports Federations Council is the largest sports organisations representative in Latvia, bringing together and representing 94 recognised sports federations, 184 recognised sports types and 1915 collective members having more than 120 000 people practising sports. It is composed of 87 sports federations, five sports sphere federations and three custom sports federations for the disabled.
Latvian Sports Federations Council
LSFC is a non-governmental foundation created in 1993 with the purpose to unite sport federations in Latvia and act as their umbrella organisation. LSFC coordinates activities of the sports federations in Latvia, contributes to strengthening of their capacity, represents and implements their common interests. LSFC certifies sports professionals (coaches) and is responsible for recognition and introduction of foreign professional qualifications in Latvia. Cooperates with the government and local authorities, promotes sport development and cooperation in the field of sport, as well as participates in the decision-making processes related to sport.
LSFC ensures that all federations get an equal support to implementation of their sports programmes and enables everyone to engage in sport activities and lead an active lifestyle.
Key responsibilities:
- Coordinate activities related to the sports federations in Latvia, contribute in strengthening their capacity, represent and implement their common interests;
- Certify sports professionals (coaches) and recognize foreign professional qualifications in Latvia;
- Cooperate with the government and local authorities, promote sport development and cooperation in the field of sport, as well as participate in the decision-making processes related to sport policy;
- Ensure that all federations get an equal support in the implementation of their sports programmes and help to enable everyone to engage in sport activities and lead an active lifestyle;
- Coordination of the European Week of Sport in Latvia since 2016.
In cooperation with the Latvian Association of Local Governments, LSFC coordinates the development of the sports industry in the Latvian regions and municipalities to strengthen cooperation ties between the Latvian authorities and the sports federations.
LSFC represents Latvia in the European Non-Governmental sports organisation (ENGSO) and are members of The Association For International Sport for All (TAFISA).
Following the Sports Policy Guidelines for 2014–2020, LSFC develops and maintains a common register of sports and is responsible for implementing of the guidelines in Latvia along with other tasks including assisting sports federations in organisation of sports events and participation in the sports competitions locally and internationally, as well as promoting a healthy and active lifestyle among different groups of society and organisation of public sports events.
Significant affiliations: Member of Latvian National Sports Council (Chairperson is the Prime Minister); Ministry for Education and Science (Higher State official responsible for Sports); Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments; member of Anti-Doping Committee; the European Non-Governmental Sports Organisations (ENGSO), The Association For International Sport for All (TAFISA).
Size of the organisation: 11 Executive Board members (Chairperson of the executive board is president); 9 full-time employees (Secretariat – administrative office), 2 part-time employees, 6 expert commissions – 25 members (volunteers).
Foreign Qualification Recognition in Latvia
Sports specialists (coaches) who have acquired education abroad have the right to work fully and independently in Latvia. In cases where a person has obtained a professional qualification in foreign states and wishes to work in Latvia in his or her acquired profession, as a sports specialist (coach), the person must initially turn to the Academic Information Centre (http://www.aic.lv/portal/en) where an application must be submitted, which must be accompanied by documents certifying the acquired education and other necessary documents.
The Academic Information Centre shall prepare its assessment and send a statement to the Latvian Sports Federations Council, which shall take a decision regarding the recognition, partial recognition or non-recognition of the professional qualification.
Projects
Projects as Coordinators
European Week of Sport in Latvia
National Coordinating Body since 2016.
European Week of Sport is an initiative of the European Commission to promote sport and physical activity across Europe. The overarching campaign theme remains “#BeActive” and encourages everyone to be active during the Week but also to stay active all year long.
Focus themes: Education, Workplace, Outdoors, Sport Clubs and Fitness centres
Takes place every year from 23-30 September across Europe.
http://beactivelatvia.lv/
https://ec.europa.eu/sport/week_en
Latvian Winter School Festival
The Festival has been taking place since 1994 and aims to promote the physical activity of school children and young people while creating a sporty sense of festival.
In 2021, the Latvian Schools Winter Festival took place virtually by competing remotely with other pupils and recording the results with smartphones in a digital platform created specifically for the Winter Festival. 1650 pupils from 108 schools carried out a total of more than 160,000 km.
http://lsfp.lv/festivals/jaunumi_festivals
Erasmus+ Sport Project: BeActive Beach Games
www.beactivebeachgames.com
Objective: Promote and support Beach Games as an instrument to promote physical and sport activities on the beach.
During the project accessible and inclusive model of beach games were developed for sports competition and physical activities on natural beaches near the sea or ocean and on artificially formed beaches in urban environments, cities or its surroundings and by rivers or lakes.
The BeActive Beach Games model was implemented for the first time in two countries, in August 2019 in Riga, Latvia, and in September in Portimao, Portugal.
The model of BeActive Beach Games along with the methodological and educational toolkit were developed with a view to be disseminated outside the project partnership as an easy-to-use tool for sports clubs and organisations, groups of individuals for use on real or artificial beaches with an aim to stimulate physical activity in a beach setting.
Project partners: Latvian Sports Federations Council (project coordinator), Estonian Beach Sports Federation, Lithuanian Union of Sports Federations, Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth, Union of Sports Federation of Catalonia, European Division of the International Sport for All Association (TAFISA), International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA)
Project duration: 1 January 2019 – 30 June 2020
Erasmus+ Sport project: Promotion and encourAGement of recreatiONal team sport (AGON)
http://agonproject.eu/
Aims and Objectives: promote active lifestyle in adolescents ages 13 – 15 that are at risk for obesity and adolescents with fewer opportunities (NEET) using recreational team sport and their guiding principles both on and off the pitch as the main tool.
Project partners: Latvian Sports Federations Council, International Floorball federation, Latvian Floorball union, Latvian Handball federation, Latvian School sport federation, Czech Handball federation, Estonian Floorball Union, Estonian Handball association, Foundation of sport education and information, Lithuanian Union of sports federations, Lithuanian Handball federation, Lithuanian Floorball federation, Polish Handball federation, Polish Floorball federation, Polish Olympic Committee
Project duration: 1 January 2015 - 31 December 2016
Projects as Partners
Erasmus+ Sport project: Empowering Women Athletes (EWA)
Status: Active
Aims and Objectives: develop a community of female athletes, professionals, sport managers and policy makers in Europe who actively prevent and counter violence, abuse, harassment, and discrimination against female athletes in key sports environments, providing them with knowledge, education, and practical tools specifically designed by the project. Designed on the basis of a Multi-layered Model approach to the given issue, for which a stratified set of stakeholders — individuals but also organisations — contribute to the determination and maintenance of a well eradicated problem.
Project partners: ENDAS (Coordinator), Bulgarian Sports Development Association, Latvian Sports Federations Council, Catalca District Directorate of National Education, Cyprus University of Technology (CUT), Eyropaiko Institouto Topikis Anaptiksis (Greece), Genc Girism (Turkey), Inovaciju akademija (Lithuania), Inforef (Belgium)
Project duration: 1 January 2021 – 30 June 2023
Erasmus+ Sport project: Doping Raising AWareness among youths in Sport recreational environments (DRAWS)
Status: Active
Aims and Objectives: addressing the issue of combating doping in recreational environments (focus group 14 – 19 years old), proposing a set of activities and EDU-communicational tools that aim at preventing the creation of a pro-doping culture within this specific target group.
A key element of the project is the activation a bottom-up process with the direct involvement of the target group, which will lead to a structural link between specific data on doping knowledge and tailored awareness training courses for preventing doping in young sport participants in recreational environments.
Project partners: Saint Hearth Catholic University (Coordinators), International Olympic Truce Centre, SC “Levski – Sport for All”, Latvian Sports Federations Council, Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano, Lithuanian Union of Sports Federation, Cesky Svaz Aeribiku A Fitness, Lega PRO, HASK Mladost.
Project duration: 1 January 2020 – 31 December 2022
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/projects/eplus-project-details/#project/613143-EPP-1-2019-1-IT-SPO-SCP
Erasmus+ Sport project: Sport for Prevention of Extremism in Youth (SPEY)
Status: Active
Aims and Objectives: combine sports practice and transversal skills with the aim to minimize the factors that intervene in the process of youth radicalisation. Furthermore, it seeks to improve integration channels for youngsters at-risk of exclusion and keeps gender-based perspective crosswise throughout the project. Led by recognized academics, the project will produce several tools to measure the effectiveness of programs aimed at preventing extremism thought sport. The project is designed and will be implemented through gender-sensitive lenses, also, in cooperation with different stakeholders, such as local administrations, sport federations, clubs and NGOs.
Project partners: Union of Sports Federations in Catalonia (Coordinators), Sport & Citizenship, International Council of Sport Science and Physical Education (ICSSPE), Swedish Sport Confederations, Latvian Sports Federations Council, University of Cordoba, Greek Ministry of Culture and Sport, Union of Parishes of Gondomar, SNAFU.CHAMP
Project duration: 1 January 2020 – 30 June 2022
https://ufec.cat/spey
Erasmus+ Sport project: Clubs for Health-enhancement, Activation, Modernisation and Participation (CHAMP)
Status: Active
Aims and Objectives: carry out research on the benefits of modernisation and innovation within the sport movement, do research on and identify innovative practices inside and outside of the sport movement to increase physical activity and sport participation, produce and disseminate educational content on these innovative practices to modernise the sport movement and to make the educational material available for the public free of charge in a Massive Open Online Course.
Project partners: European Non-governmental Sports Organisation (ENGSO) (Coordinator), Swedish Sport confederation, Lithuanian Union of Sports federations, Estonian Foundation of Sport Education and Information, Latvian Sports Federations Council, International council of sport science and physical education, Portuguese Sports Confederation, NOC & Sports Confederation of Denmark, OPES - Organizazione Per l’Educazione allo Sport.
Project duration: 1 January 2019 – 30 June 2021
https://www.engso.eu/champ-project
Baltic RECoord
Status: Finished
Aims and Objectives: placing focus on sustainable sports events, where with support from Swedish Institute, there were 3 webinars and 3 seminars about sustainability in sport events – learning from best practises, discussing and defining, what is sustainable event and compiling guidance material for sustainable sport events.
Project partners: Swedish Sport confederation (Coordinator), Lithuanian Union of Sports federations, Estonian Olympic Committee, Latvian Sports Federations Council
Project duration: August 2018 – November 2019
https://www.engso.eu/post/baltic-recoord-winning-sustainability
Erasmus+ Sport project: Practical Execution of Good Governance in Sport for Baltics (GANTT)
Status: Finished
Aims and Objectives: close the gap between theory and practice with enhancing of sport federations and sport clubs with practical guidance on how to identify and implement principles of good governance. This would help to identify, promote and share of good governance practices and would assist in developing necessary skills for practical application in local and national sport organizations from Baltic's.
Project partners: Lithuanian Union of Sports federations (Coordinator), National Olympic Committee of Lithuania, Sport Club “Žaliasis lankas”, Estonian Olympic Committee, Latvian Sports Federations Council
Project duration: 1 January 2019 – 31 December 2019
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/projects/eplus-project-details/#project/603366-EPP-1-2018-1-LT-SPO-SSCP
Erasmus+ Sport project: Encouraging girls participation in sport 2 (EGPIS2)
Status: Finished
Aims and Objectives: development of women’s sport that aims to identify tools to overcome the most common barriers that prevent girls to practise sport. Through research and development of guidelines and training course, to find answers when it comes to promoting equal opportunities in sports, concerning the specific target of girls and young women. Promote the well-being and social inclusion through sports.
Project partners: ENDAS (Coordinator), Catalca District Directorate of National Education (Turkey), the Cyprus University of Technology (Cyprus), Hranice Development Agency (Czech Republic), Varmsland Sport Federation (Sweden), The Access to Sport (UK), Mirandela Municipality (Portugal), Bulgarian Sports Development Association, Latvian Sports Federations Council
Project duration: 1 January 2018 – 31 December 2019
www.egpis2.com
Erasmus+ Sport project: Women’s empowerment in sport and physical education industry (MIRACLE)
Status: Finished
Aims and Objectives: empower women in management positions in sport organizations by providing sport administration course to show women how strategically us their strengths and abilities while mastering their competitive mindset, as well as become more confident in a competitive, male-dominated industry and to set a networking platform of women leaders in sport which would work on voluntary bases to support and counsel their young women peers who just starting sport administration career.
Project partners: Lithuanian Union of Sports federations (Coordinator), National Olympic Committee of Lithuania, Kaunas Judo Club “Ryto Saule”, Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano, Latvian Sports Federations Council
Project duration: 1 January 2018 – 31 December 2018