Final Project Meeting and Conference of the Erasmus Safe Combat project has been held in Portugal, from 22-25 October 2026.
WAKO Europe was represented by Leonardo Cunha, Jake Riddel and Marijana Pelevic as project participants, together with Romeo Desa, WAKO Europe Board member, representing WAKO EU. The fourth member of the WAKO EU team, Ilija Salerno participated online in this event.
All project partners (European Judo, Thomas More University, Sport Evolution Aliance, Sport Inovation Hub, Karate Federation North Macedonia) attended
the final meeting and participated in line with their respective roles and responsibilities. Two technical meetings were held on 23rd and 24th, during which the
consortium reviewed the project’s implementation, summarized its achievements and evaluated the results delivered by each partner. All consortium members
presented their respective contributions.
Leonardo Cunha prepared and delivered a presentation outlining all phases of activities for which WAKO Europe was responsible. The other members of our
group actively contributed to the subsequent discussions, providing additional input and perspectives on work of WAKO Europe.
The consortium unanimously concluded that the project had been successfully completed. Considering the extensive experience of the participating
organisations in implementing Erasmus+ projects, this conclusion carries particular weight.
WAKO Europe received very positive feedback and recognition for the quality and significance of its contribution to the project.
The final conference was held on 24th October and brought together representatives of Portuguese clubs that had successfully obtained SAFE COMBAT certification. Their certificates were formally presented during the event, marking an important milestone in the project’s implementation and its practical impact at club level. The conference also welcomed distinguished academics and experts from the Faculty of Human Kinetics in Lisbon, including Miguel Nery and Bruno Avelar Rosa, whose work focuses on coach education, athlete safeguarding and related research. They presented scientific work addressing these important topics.
Other prominent participants included:
-Kristina Pekkola, Vice-President of the European Judo Union (EJU);
-Filomena Fortes, representing ACOLOP Cabo Verde and an IOC Member;
-Haruka Tashimoto, Olympic judo champion at the 2016 Olympic Games;
-Tine Vertommen, criminologist and safeguarding expert.
Romeo Desa was invited to address the conference participants and took the opportunity to express his appreciation for the cooperation and collaborative
efforts of the consortium partners.
Panel Discussion and WAKO Europe’s Contribution
The conference continued with a panel discussion featuring two former athletes from judo and karate, the Secretary General of the European Judo Union, and
Marijana Pelevic from WAKO EU as a safeguarding expert. The discussion addressed some of the most important and challenging issues concerning athlete safeguarding in combat sports, including the responsibilities of sports organisations, the role of coaches in creating safe sporting environment.
