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WADA highlights breakout sessions for its 2024 Global Education Conference (GEC) in February

gec-cannes

GEC and/or Social Science Research Symposium registration deadline is 18 February 

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is pleased to highlight some of the breakout sessions for its upcoming 2024 Global Education Conference (GEC), which will be held on 27-29 February 2024 at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France, in partnership with France’s National Anti-Doping Organization, AFLD (Agence française de lutte contre le dopage). 

Register now to be part of these exciting conversations! 

Breakout Sessions 

You can find the preliminary program here.   

  • Education foundations – understanding the fundamentals of building an education program and writing an education plan: Building the foundations of an education program requires empathy, technical skill, and thinking time. If you want to learn about developing an education plan, see how WADA can help, hear practical examples from ADOs, and find answers to your questions, then come and join us in this session.  

  • Using behavioral science to promote clean sport values and behaviors: The real power of education is when it can develop, instill, or reinforce behaviors. In clean sport, we often focus our efforts on providing knowledge – but this is only half the story. Our focus in education must shift to developing clean sport behaviors. This session will explore and provide recommendations on how to use behavioral science and its principles to impact our education programs. 

  • System building – Education for all, from playground to podium: In this session, we will explore how to develop an education program that reaches athletes along the athlete pathway - from children engaged in school sport to elite athletes. We will explain how to support each target group and share tools that can help. 

  • Nutritional supplements and unintentional doping: Supporting athletes to avoid unintentional doping is where education can have a big impact. This session will provide an overview of unintentional doping risks that can be challenging for athletes and their support personnel. It will focus on nutritional supplements, a persistently problematic area of unintentional doping. Join us to learn how education programs can help athletes navigate the risks. 

  • GLDF4CleanSport: Anti-doping is a relatively new industry with a mix of disciplines and people from various technical backgrounds operating together. To further the recognition of anti-doping as a profession, it is key we harmonize and enrich the skills and competencies of the people working hard for clean sport. In this session, we will present a collaborative initiative that invests in the learning and development of anti-doping practitioners.  

  • ISE update sessions: The clean sport education world changed in 2021 when the first International Standard for Education was born! It was the most advanced policy development in education in the history of the World Anti-Doping Program. So, what’s next? Help us continue the evolution of the role of education in clean sport. Participants in this session will be able to contribute to the update of the next version of the ISE.  

Social Science Research (SSR) Symposium 

In conjunction with the Conference, WADA will be hosting an SSR Symposium on 27 February 2024 at the Université Côte d'Azur. The main goal of the Symposium is to encourage discussion and collaboration within the SSR community on wider research issues, such as working with practitioners, undertaking multidisciplinary research, and recruitment of athletes. 

Registration 

Should you wish to register for the Conference and/or the SSR Symposium, we invite you to do so on the Conference website by 18 February 2024. Further details concerning the Conference, including how to book your hotel accommodation, are available on the 2024 GEC website. We strongly encourage you to book your hotel accommodation as early as possible. 

Should you have any questions regarding the GEC, please contact Anaïs Lefevre, WADA’s Events Manager at anais.lefevre@wada-ama.org. 

We look forward to welcoming many of you in Cannes in February!