Chefs de Mission from European NOCs gathered in Kraków from 7-9 November, where they were presented with vital Games time planning information and visited venues ahead of the third edition of the European Games.
The first day of the seminar was split into four sessions and delegates were informed on a wide variety of topics including: sport and venue operations, logistics, ticketing, volunteer programme, marketing and TV production. On the second day, representatives enjoyed a tour of the sports venues across the region, in particular they visited Tarnow (sport climbing, badminton, beach soccer, beach handball), Nowy Sacz (breaking), Krynica-Zdroj (cycling MTB, judo, taekwondo), Zakopane (ski jumping), Nowy Targ (boxing), Krakow (Main Athletes’ Village, rugby sevens, 3×3 basketball, fencing, triathlon, canoe slalom & sprint).
In his welcome address, Coordination Commission for the European Games Kraków Małopolska 2023 Chair Hasan Arat, highlighted the global challenges that are being overcome to ensure the Games are delivered to a high standard. With the COP 27 conference currently underway, Arat also stressed the need for a sustainable approach: “We are doing everything in our capacity to make these Games as sustainable as possible by using existing venues and not building new ones and by making careful use of resources. Under the slogan WE ARE UNITY the Games will be organised across 4 regions – showing a great solidarity spirit from the host country.”
Arat called on the NOCs to contribute to a team effort to ensure greater promotion of the Games to increase engagement, with Europe’s best athletes expected to attend: “Krakow-Malopolska 2023 will offer your NOCs the most Olympic qualification opportunities for Paris 2024 and most of the competitions will serve as European Championships. Our arrangement with the EBU also means that the performances of your athletes will be watched throughout Europe.”
“The organisers, the sports, the EOC and the NOCs, we are all bringing something to the table. But we all recognise that the greatest value comes from the athletes and the way they are supported in delivering their very best performances.”
Participants were very engaged throughout the seminar, which was attended by 100 delegates from 45 NOCs.
Sessions started with the Local Organising Committee (LOC) giving detailed information on the current landscape of the Games from an operational perspective, and updated representatives on the sports and venue operations processes.
The second session focused on crucial information regarding safety and security during the Games. Accreditation was also covered, and updates were given on the Athletes’ Village.
The third session was centred around logistics, with the transportation network discussed in depth. The LOC provided an update on the progress being made with the volunteer programme. To be considered for selection, volunteers are required to be over the age of 16, fluent in English and available for at least 8 of the 13 days, Games time period. Over 1,000 application have been received so far since the launch of the volunteer platform on 7 October 2022. It will be possible to send applications until April 2023.
The final session of the seminar saw the focus turn to media operations in the build-up and during the Games. Innovative strategies for the marketing and promotion of the event were examined, with unique approaches being developed to ensure that the entire continent can engage with the European Games in a variety of ways.
The European Games Kraków Małopolska 2023 takes place from 21 June – 2 July 2023, and will feature 25 sports.
