ECU has established a constant communication with the European Union Authorities and annual regular meetings taking place in order to extend the co-operation and to search for new areas of common actions. On the 25th of April ECU President Zurab Azmaiparashvili together with the ECU Deputy President Ion-Serban Dobronauteanu and the President of the Romanian Chess Federation Mr. Sorin-Avram Iacoban paid a visit to the EU headquarters in Brussels.
First scheduled meeting was with the Romanian EU Commissioner Corina Cretu , there were discussed the social values of chess, in particular in education and job market. Mr. Zurab Azmaiparashvili proposed for the next year, during Romania’s presidency of the EU, to include chess in the agenda related to youth and education.
Next meeting was with the Polish MEP Bogdan Wenta, a former top professional sportsman and member of the European Parliament Cultural Commission, focusing in the EU politics and mechanisms in sports field. It is agreed ECU and Mr. Wenta to further exchange information and identify certain directions giving chess higher values as sport, education tool and also to define the relevance of chess in the sports business frame.
The third meeting was with Mr. Szabolcs Horvath, member of the Tibor Navracsics’ cabinet, the EU commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport. The main topic of the meeting was to identify the most suitable directions for the European Chess Union to put in practice its potential and to fructify its capacity by creating projects in education, sports, social domains. Having regard to the continental scale of ECU activity, Mr. Horvath mentioned the next calls for big sport events and respectively partnerships directions that the Commission will open this September, comprising up to 500,000 euros financial support. Mr. Horvath also to be supported additional Erasmus + programs related with chess for the year 2020.
All three meetings were very constructive and the EU officials acknowledged chess’ wide expand and significant contribution in sports field and the potential in social directions.
