EPAS bureau election and the launch of new project
Meeting on 14-15 May, Council of Europe’s Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) held their annual joint plenary meeting on 14 and 15 May 2025 in Strasbourg, France. During plenary meeting, the governing board elected its new bureau. Solène Charuau (France) and Ioanna Paraskevopoulou (Cyprus) were elected as Chair and Vice-Chair respectively. Antonio Parrilla (Italy), Simon De Coster (Belgium), Marija Jurčević (Croatia) and Elnur Mammadov (Azerbaijan) were elected as representatives of regions 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively. Solène Charuau was also elected as Gender Equality Rapporteur.
The Consultative Committee also held its plenary meeting, during which it elected Guido Battaglia (Centre for Sport and Human Rights) as a member of the bureau. ENGSO was represented by Office Director Marie Denitton, who is currently serving Gender Equality Rapporteur until 2026.
In parallel, the launch event of the European Union-Council of Europe joint project “Sport For All: Promoting Inclusion and Combating Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities” took place on 15 May 2025. The “Sport For All” project expands on existing initiatives to foster a more inclusive sports culture by removing obstacles and encouraging greater participation of people with disabilities in sports.