AHOD / ERASMUS- PARTNERSHIP EN

Consortium of partners in AHOD PROJECT consists of 7 organizations – 6 representing EU Program Countries, 1 representing Non-EU Program Country (Turkey)

PROFILE AND EXPERIENCE OF THE PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS

1. Coordinator: Slovak Sailing Federation (Slovakia)

Slovak Sailing Federation (SSF) is an association of yachting sport clubs in Slovakia. It represents the national body in World Sailing and EUROSAF, where SSF is the valid participating member. SSF cooperates also with other national federations in various international competitions. SSF is supporting clubs by registration, administration, and assistance with national or international sailing events. The federation provides essential services such as registration, administration, and logistical support to member clubs.

The Slovak Sailing Federation (SSF) is the governing body and umbrella organization for sailing sports clubs in Slovakia. As a member of World Sailing and EUROSAF, it serves as the official representative of Slovak sailing at the international stage.

SSF also belongs into the group of sports those are included in Slovak Olympic Committee and has a role in fostering top-level competition and supporting athletes in sailing on the path to Olympic participation.

SSF's operation is based on volunteering work, with the entire association relying heavily on the commitment and involvement of volunteers. Recognizing the importance of managing and engaging volunteers, SSF places a strong emphasis on its development, ensuring the sustainability and effectiveness of its initiatives. 

2. Polish Yachting Association (Poland) 

The Polish Yachting Association (PYA) is a Polish sports association founded 96 years ago in 1925. The Association is a member organisation of the Polish Olympic Committee (PKOl), the European SailingFederation (EUROSAF), the International Sailing Federation – World Sailing (WS), the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC) and the European Boating Association (EBA). The Association’s area of activity is the territory of the Republic of Poland. Its main function is to represent Poland internationally both in the context of sports (the national players) and organisation (activists). The Association operates as a union of associations comprising a total of 810 regular and supporting members, including 36 regional sailing associations, 528 regular associations (including clubs) and more. There are many Committees and Special Interest Groups within the Association.

3. Hungarian Sailing Federation (Hungary)

The Hungarian Sailing Federation was established in 1929 and it is the organization of the member associations. The individual sailors integrate into the system through their membership in the association. Since its inception it has been chaired by 20 presidents. Today, HSF has 155 clubs with more than four thousand members. On the lakes of Hungary, the member associations organize more than two hundred sailing competitions a year. Competitors can compete for national championship titles in 50-55 different categories and boat classes. Hungarian sailing is also actively connected to international competition. World and European championships and European Cup races take place on Lake Balaton four or six times a year in various boat classes. There are a lot of volunteers working in competitions in our clubs, that’s why HSF can be a worthy partner in this collaboration because of our experiences in volunteering.

4. Project partner - Turkish Sailing Federation (Turkey) 

The Turkish Sailing Federation (Turkish: Turkiye Yelken Federasyonu) is the national governing body for the sport of sailing in Turkey, recognised by the International Sailing Federation. TSF is a non-profit association that works to put all the resources related to sailing into the most effective way in order to develop and expand Turkish sailing sport and increase the number of sailors. It is also responsible for development of various branches of sailing, establishment of sports facilities focusing on sailing for physical education and operation of these facilities; and for taking the necessary precautions for supervising and arranging the relevant procedures and principles for sustainability of all kinds of activities to improve sailing sport.

Turkish Sailing Federation is the National Authority for sailing sports in Turkey and has in its competence all relevant matters related to sports nationwide but also cover international contacts both worldwide and in Europe, therefore we feel the responsibility to cover each aspect of this responsibility.

Cooperation and developing people in all areas including national and international volunteering as well as connecting youth in other countries is an important task. 

5. Constanta Maritime University (Romania)

Constanta Maritime University is a preeminent higher education institution in the maritime field. The university was established in 1990 and has been accredited by the Ministry of Education (ME), the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ARACIS) and by the Romanian Naval Authority (ANR).

Ever since its establishment, CMU has made a commitment to permanently update its educational offer, to meet the changing needs of global industry. Today, our university stands out as one of the Romanian higher education institutions most closely connected to the economic reality. CMU’s study programs are targeted at the international maritime industry, as they are meant to train highly skilled personnel, able to face the competition and work in multicultural environments.

CMU has concluded over 30 partnerships with worldwide maritime institutions, which were meant to explore and promote cooperation in the fields of teaching and research, to foster staff exchanges and continuing education in areas of mutual interest, and to broaden the experience of the faculty and students of each party, by providing them with opportunities for increased cultural understanding. CMU’s membership in reputable international organizations focuses on improving the theoretical and practical training of future seagoing personnel, by sharing the view that effective education and training in the maritime sector derive from scientific and academic rigor and from the development of a clear link between practical skills, management techniques and focus on quality. The university is affiliated to the following international organizations: International Association of Maritime Universities (IAMU), Black Sea Association of Maritime Institutions (BSAMI), International Maritime Lecturers Association (IMLA), International Association of Universities (IAU), Black Sea University Network (BSUN).

Constanta Maritime University has a good history of participating in EU-funded projects, either as a beneficiary or as a partner. Participation in such projects fully aligns with CMU’s overall goals: to promote academic and human excellence in the production of knowledge and its application to solve pressing problems of today’s society (such as digitalization, climate change and environmental protection, cyber security and gender equality), and to promote innovation and quality in research, teaching and learning. 

6- Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” (Bulgaria)

Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” is a non-government organization for public benefit, organized and registered under the laws of the Republic of Bulgaria. The club has 45 years of history and is one of the oldest sailing clubs in Bulgaria with impressive sailing achievements and long lasting traditions. Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” was established in 1976 as a department within the Port of Bourgas. In 1996 the club was registered in accordance with the Persons and Family Act at Bourgas District Court and entered under batch No 8, vol. 2, p. 180 company case 1132/1996. In 2000 the club was re-registered as an association under the Bulgarian Non-profit Legal Persons Act. In 2019 the club was registered at the Entry Agency - Commercial Register and Register of Non-government Legal Entities under Unified Identity Code 102018884. Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” is enrolled in the Central Register of non-profit organizations with the Bulgarian Ministry of Justice to carry out activity in public benefit under No 0296011321.

The club has 145 members and has employed 2 coaches since 2014 that secure the proper education and training of the young sailors. The club is managed by a Managing Board of 7 members with skills, knowledge and experience both in sailing and in management. All of them are volunteers. The club is a member of the Bulgarian Sailing Federation. Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” has 21 qualified National Judges and Race Officers, 2 qualified International Judges and 1 qualified International Race Officer.Yacht Club “Port Bourgas” is focusing on educating and developing youth sailing, training young pe ople to spend more time among nature. The main goals of the club are: development of sea sports and tourism with sailing yachts and other boats; organizing sea adventures of its members and supporting them to handle their proper marine education; protecting the environment; organizing and taking part in regattas and other sea events; education and training of children and youths; establishment of partnership with similar organizations worldwide; working for social integration and personal improvement. 

7. Tallinn Yacht Club (Estonia) 

Tallinn Yacht Club was founded in 1910. Our club is a member of the Estonian Yachting Union. Today Tallinn Yacht Club is situated in the newest and most modern marina in Estonia - Haven Kakumae. Tallinn Yacht Club owns a sailing school that has 150 sailors in 3 different locations: Pirita, Kakumae and Lohusalu. The club annually organizes one of the biggest Estonian dinghy regattas - Tallinn Yacht Club Cup in Lohusalu. In 2022 the number of regattas will increase with 3 Estonian Cup events planned and a local dinghy regatta series that will cover the whole season. Regarding the project Tallinn Yacht Club regattas will offer a good platform to test and develop volunteer engagement and our club race officials can test the projected volunteer platform. This winter our club has started a new volunteer teaching course which we hope will increase the number of people who will first do volunteer work at
regattas and later will educate themselves at Estonian Yachting Union courses to become educated race officials.