El Pedreguer town hall and Municipal Sports School of Basketball by Pedreguer have participated on the days 20 and January 21 at a sports and awareness event held in the Portuguese city of Mirandela, focused on the importance of sport as a tool for social inclusion and the promotion of gender equality.
This activity is part of the European project "Equal Play – breaking the glass ceiling of basketball", an initiative coordinated by the municipality of Pedreguer and financed by the European Union, in which entities from Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus and Türkiye, in addition to the Portuguese association ADCS of Carvalhais, host of the meeting.
The Pedreguera delegation consisted of Mayor and Councillor for Municipal Projection, Sergi Ferrus perisBy Anabel Flee, basketball coordinator of the Pedreguer Municipal Sports School, and by eight players from the girls' cadet team from school.
Participation in this European meeting aimed to contribute to break the glass ceiling and gender stereotypes among young women through sport, using basketball as a tool for empowerment and as a way to to foster a shared European identity, especially necessary in the current context.
A cultural itinerary before arriving in Mirandela
Before arriving in Portugal, the delegation took a historical and cultural tour of various locations on the Iberian Peninsula. The first stop was segobriga, where the urbanism and the historical context of the Roman era through a visit to , and the circus, both perfectly preserved.
The itinerary continued through Toledo, known as the city of three cultures, and by Avilanotable for having one of the best-preserved city walls in Europe. Afterwards, the group visited Salamanca, home to the oldest operating university in Spain and the fourth oldest in Europe. After this tour, the delegation arrived at Mirandela, where the project's transnational meeting was held.
Equal Play project working meeting
El January 20 The first meeting between the delegations of Pedreguer, Portugal, Croatia, Cyprus and Türkiye, held at the headquarters of the ADCS of Carvalhais.
During the meeting, issues related to the organizing the next project meeting in Croatia, as well as other internal aspects, including the development of curriculum of good practices and the actions of diffusion that are being carried out to maximize the impact of the project among the citizens of the European Union.
Talks on equality and female role models in sports
In the afternoon a series of events was held talks focused on gender equality in the sports field. Firstly, Artur Santos, a university professor in Sports Science, presented with data the main challenges that current societies face in achieving effective equality between men and women.
Among the highlighted examples, she pointed out that, despite the notable increase in young girls participating in sports, Women continue to be underrepresented in management positions of sports organizations.
Then Sofia Coelho, a former professional player and former member of the Portuguese national team, encouraged the young participants to Don't give up on your dreams due to stereotypes or social pressures. During her speech, she recounted the difficulties she encountered at the beginning of her career, reviewed her professional trajectory, and emphasized the personal satisfaction she derived from not giving up, insisting that "if she achieved it, anyone can."
Subsequently, Paulo Araujo, a member of the Portuguese delegation, explained the work carried out by her association, which has managed to go in just a few years from having only one basketball player to exceeding one hundred athletes.
The last intervention was carried out by Anabel Flee, who explained the model of success for women's basketball in Pedreguer, a municipality of 8.500 inhabitants that has around 190 players, with several women's teams leading their respective categories and becoming a benchmark for other clubs.
Joint training session and friendly match
The day concluded with a joint training among the women's teams of Mirandela BC and the Pedreguer Municipal Basketball Sports Schoolwhich culminated in the celebration of a friendly match between both formations.
Cultural visit to Porto and closing of the meeting
As a closing event to this transnational meeting, after the presentation of gifts to the various international delegations, the Pedreguera delegation paid a visit to Porto, the second most important city in the host country.
During their stay they learned about relevant aspects of their history, crop and wine production, one of the main economic drivers of the region.
The Equal Play project
The project Equal Play aims to promote the gender equality and social inclusion through basketballThe initiative brings together schools, associations and European research centers working on the design and application of innovative methodologies to combat the abandonment of female sports practice upon reaching adulthood.
The results of the project will be presented in Pedreguer in September 2026All members of the delegation have given this meeting a very positive assessment, highlighting the experience gained and the commitment of the European partners to the inclusion, female empowerment, and the transformative power of sport in the society.
