More than 100 athletes took part in the Croatian Olympic Committee’s education event titled “Safe Sport Days – Where the Conversation Begins,” held at the premises of the national Olympic association in Zagreb.

The first day of the two-day event, focused on sport as a safe environment for all stakeholders, was opened by Croatian Olympic Committee President Zlatko Mateša. He emphasized the importance of such gatherings, noting that parents need to be aware of the environment in which they are placing their children for training. He added that, given Croatia’s poor demographic picture, the mission is to attract as many children as possible to sport from a small base of about 700,000 people under the age of 19.

Renowned Olympian and Croatian Olympic Committee Vice President Barbara Matić highlighted the importance of feeling safe in sport, “as many athletes spend a large part of their lives in it.” She told young athletes they must not tolerate any form of discrimination or violence. This message was echoed by Morana Paliković Gruden, Chair of the Croatian Olympic Committee’s Gender Equality in Sport Commission, who stressed that the most important thing is to become aware of and recognize the problem, and to find methods for addressing and eliminating it.

The second day of the education programme, was designed for coaches.