Seychelles Athletes' Commission – Olympic Values Education Programme (Ovep) |22 October 2022

Ms Duval running one of the sessions (Photo: Roland Duval)

Local athletes learn more on Olympic values of excellence

Based on the Olympic philosophy that learning takes place through the balanced development of body and mind, a group of local athletes have followed a two-day seminar aimed at portraying sports as an excellent tool for positive outcomes such as peace, holistic education and social development.

Hosted by the Seychelles Athletes’ Commission and the Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association (Socga), the training sessions were held at the Olympic House and facilitator Stephanie Duval used the Olympic sport traditions and positive sporting values as the context for teaching life skills, values and life-long participation in sport for a healthy lifestyle.

According to chairperson of the Seychelles Athletes' Commission Simone Malbrook, they decided to host the workshop – under the Olympic Values Education Programme (Ovep) which is a practical set of resources designed to inspire and allow young people to imbibe the Olympic values of excellence, respect and friendship – as part of their programme to empower youths in sports through the Olympic values.

She said the main constraint of the commission at the moment is cooperation with various entities, including workplaces and local sporting federations to release and enrol participants for the various training organised so far.

Chairman of the Seychelles Chess Federation, Benjamin Hoareau, who attended the workshop explained that it was the perfect opportunity to share ideas with representatives of other sporting disciplines, while gathering tips on how to improve on planning, preparing and hosting future competitions and tournaments.

As for young Praslinois judoka Rovernie Pillay, he said the workshop was the ideal opportunity to learn more on the Olympic philosophy as an athlete.

He said many young athletes like himself know about the Olympic Games, but not the organisation as a whole.

Using the symbols of the Olympic Games, the theme of Olympism, and drawing on the highlights of the ancient and modern Olympic Games, the Ovep disseminates a values-based curriculum that helps shape character among children and youth.

The cornerstone of the programme is the Olympic ideal that 'learning involves the whole body, not only the mind', while it uses Olympic sport traditions and positive sporting values as the context for teaching life skills, values and life-long participation in sport for a healthy lifestyle.

The programme aims to create a sustainable platform to address societal issues such as healthy life style, social inclusion, gender balance, physical and academic literacy, as well as the rebuilding of local communities.

Roland Duval