Language Select

 

Eroeffnung der Sportschule in Nilaveli verschoben auf Feb .2007
vom 13.02.2007 bis 13.02.2007

Nachfolgend eine Abhandlung erstellt von AGSEP Praktikanten zu den verschiedenen Aktionsfeldern AGSEP′s


AGSEP (Asian German Sports Exchange Program)

History and Foundation
In 1989 Mr. Dietmar Doering signed a one-year contract with the Ministry of Sports assigning him as the coach of the Sri Lankan National Table Tennis Team. In this year the world cup championships took place in Germany, Dortmund, and a friendly match between the Sri Lankan National Team and a local German team was arranged. With financial support of two German table tennis clubs the Sri Lankan players were enabled to take part.
Local media covered the event and the organizers confirmed that it had been a great success. Based on the positive experience of this unique event, the idea of regular sports exchanges between Sri Lanka and Germany was born.

These were the first steps of Sri Lankan German Sports Exchange Program.

Between 1989 and 1999 over 5.000 sports people from both countries participated under the Sri Lankan German Sports Exchange Program on reciprocal visits
In the year 1995 the program has been extended to other South Asian countries (Thailand, Vietnam and the Maldives) and was therefore renamed in Asian German Sports Exchange Program and thereafter appearing only under its abbreviated form

The headquarters of AGSEP are located in Marawila, Sri Lanka and an office of correspondence is located in Bad Kissingen, Germany. The founder and Chief Executive Officer of AGSEP since 1989 up to date is Dietmar Doering.

Philosophy

The principle philosophy of AGSEP is simply “connecting sports people”. Sport is admired all over the world and opens barriers irrespective of one’s individual performance level. Sport itself incorporates simple communication methods, it units people with different ethnical, cultural and religious backgrounds on neutral platforms. By connecting sportspeople AGSEP provides a basis for approximation between international and local teams and even more important, between local teams all over in South Asian countries.
According to AGSEP’s philosophy, sport events serve as a platform for intercultural communication and help to overcome language barriers and on long term offerings easing ongoing ethnic conflicts.

“…Special events are important contributors to the social fabric of inter-community relationships and socio-cultural impacts are expected to be particularly strong and valuable in sporting encounters of different ethnic groups” (Botes and Pelser 2005; Schulenkorf 2005; Gasser and Levinsen 2004).

Mission
One main task of AGSEP is to support the peace process in Sri Lanka by organising various kinds of sport events, social projects and workshops focusing on relevant topics like “Social impacts of Sport Events”.

The work of AGSEP touches following operation fields:

- Promoting all kinds of sport and development in poor and remote areas of Sri Lanka by means of interaction and exchanges between national and international sport teams.
- Undertaking feasibility studies, research, appraisals and executing programs and projects for sportspeople and the community development.
- Organising diversified training courses, workshops and seminars that are relevant to international sport programs in order to promote sport practice, language skills and providing sports equipment.
- Promoting and organising social projects and other activities in Sri Lanka relevant and supportive to the peace process with the assistance of government departments.

AGSEP intends to contribute to the peace process and mutual understanding between Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim groups, as shown in our current project “Peace Village” in Nattandiya.



Peace Village

In cooperation with Peace Village International AGSEP has completed the Intercultural Sport School in Nattandiya comprising of a 25m swimming pool, a mini soccer ground, playstations and other sport facilities. Accommodation in 10 residential bungalows for approximately 80 children including teachers and/or parents, one Mensa for 200 people and one Indoor playhouse for 100 children.

Other locations in Nilaveli (Northeast coast) and Mullativu enrich the ethnic diversity of AGSEP’s intercultural program. All in all AGSEP’s intercultural sport centres are located in the north, east, south and west of the island, the locations idealistically will serve as a platform for an intercultural sport exchange program enabling specially children of all ethnic communities to enter in a meaningful early contact and fostering thereby closer relationships.

In near future AGSEP will embark to build a new Peace Village as in the upcountry regions of Sri Lanka.
Based on fundamental studies in collaboration with Universities from Italy, Germany and Australia, it can be assumed that an early intercultural-based contact between children of the three communities could support significantly towards a better understanding and thereby enhancing ethnic harmony.

Intercultural Sport Meetings and Workshops

AGSEP conducts workshops for sport teachers and club coaches with the aim to increase inter-ethnical sport activities in the Northern and Eastern regions of the country.
In addition AGSEP organizes and coordinates regular Intercultural Sport Meetings in Nattandiya, inviting children of the age group 8 to 14 years originating from Tamil, Singhalese and Muslim areas in the country.
AGSEP’s team, consisting of outstanding university students from Germany, Italy and Austria, conducts sport events to enable children to enjoy a time of pleasure and while doing so to indirectly built up closer relationships regardless their inter- ethnic origin.

Since mainly children from the north-east and the south had been seriously affected by the Tsunami in 2004 and subsequent daily hardships, AGSEP focused mainly on children from these parts of the island. The intercultural sport events will - at least for a short period of time - enable these affected children to forget their traumas.

Additional to the Events, taking place once a month, local children come to the sport centre on a regular basis twice a week. Children attend various courses with emphasis on sport games.Languages classes in German and English built the communication bridge..


International Run for Peace

In cooperation with the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs AGSEP organised an “International Run for Peace on October 1st 2006. About 200 national and international sportspeople registered for 5 km, 10 km or 21 km took part in the run. Sri Lankan athletes with different backgrounds, as well as international participants, from embassies, international organisations and companies ran through the main avenues of Colombo, thereby catching the attention of the people at the side of the roads and the traffic participants.

All together, the runners and the big number of spectators demonstrated mutual interest in promoting peace through the Run. The day culminated in a closing ceremony where the best runners were awarded with cash prices while well-known Sri Lankan pop stars provided entertained the crowd.
The “International Run for Peace” was sponsored by MTV and Red Bull.




Future Outlook

The ambition for the future is to further intensify the sports exchange programs. Moreover, A.G.S.E.P. will in particular concentrate on the enhancements of its 4 sport centres. All sports centres will provide the platforms for regular exchange programs following a rotation principle in order to enable children from different parts of the island to see regions they have never seen before and establish friendships regardless of ethnical origin. Moreover, each sports centre shall organise the weekly courses according to the Nattandiya example. In the long run more of these centres shall be built all over the island incorporating the support of local schools and educational institutions.