Sport is often associated with competition, performance, and results. But what if it was also a positive and inclusive space enhancing young people’s mental wellbeing? This question is at the heart of MINDFIT – Empowering Minds: Enhancing children’s mental fitness, a new initiative that raises awareness of inclusion and young people’s mental wellbeing in sport.
Co-funded by the European Commission, the project aims to support the psychological health and mental fitness of children, adolescents, and young adults in sports and educational settings by providing practical tools to all stakeholders and promoting more inclusive and mindful educational and sport environments.
The Kick-off Meeting took place in July 2025 in Nicosia, Cyprus, bringing together partners from Italy, Greece, and Cyprus to reflect on mental wellbeing in sports settings.With contributions from professionals in psychology, pedagogy, and education, the discussion shed light on the cultural differences across the three countries. While in some contexts mental health is increasingly integrated into educational practices, in others it remains less visible – or considered secondary. However, a common challenge emerged: how to help young people cope with stress, develop resilience, and feel free to express their emotions.
The participants explored how sports can serve as a space where young people experience joy, teamwork, and belonging, but also pressure, performance anxiety, exclusion, and stereotypes. Supporting mental wellbeing in sport therefore means providing concrete tools for parents, coaches, teachers, and educators to guide young people on a healthy journey of personal and social growth.
MINDFIT marks an important step toward a cultural shift: seeing education and sport not only as spaces of performance, but as safe places where young people can grow, discover themselves, and build inclusive communities.
Would you like to learn more about the project activities or propose collaborations with schools, sport teams, or youth associations? Read the project factsheet on the CESIE website and stay connected through MINDFIT’s social channels: on Facebook mindfitproject, Instagram mindfit_project, and LinkedIn mindfit-eu-project.
About the project
MINDFIT – Empowering Minds: Enhancing children’s mental fitness is a European project funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) program under the agreement number 101190133 — MINDFIT — CERV-2024-CHILD. The project has a duration of 24 months and is implemented in Cyprus, Greece, and Italy, starting on 1st May 2025.
Partners:
- CYENS CoE (Coordinator, Cyprus)
- GDA Sports (Cyprus)
- INQUIRIUM LTD (Cyprus)
- Symplexis (Greece)
- UTH (Greece)
- CESIE ETS (Italy)
- RoT (Greece)
For further information
Please contact sefora.giaimo@cesie.org.
