Gornje Vežice were all shook up from judo coming from the stage. The national day of persons with cerebral palsy, on 8 May 2019, was celebrated in the Rijeka primary school Gornje Vežice  with the show ”The Gentle Path,“ telling the story of the creation of judo. Within the project JUDO INclusion – ACTIVE AND HEALTHY – RIJEKA, the pupils in grades one through four learnt a lot about the judo sport, and were invited to try to master judo skills. The children enjoyed the demonstrations of judo throws and grips, in the skills that were performed for them by the judo contestants of the judo club Rijeka. Children with developmental difficulties also received a giant applause when they demonstrated judo adjusted to their needs, but these throws too resounded from the stage, which impressed all pupils. Thus the applause got the judo player of the judo club  Rijeka with cerebral palsy Clara Višić and her coaches Sandra Uršičić and Aleksandro Obrovac. All together, we enjoyed listening to the tale “The Gentle Path,” retold on the stage by the actor Ivan Đuričić, while Luka Justinić entertained the children with his magic tricks.

Children with developmental difficulties are more limited in their participation in sports activities than their peers, while the gap grows with. This is why “JUDO INclusion“ was initiated. A child with developmental difficulties also experiences problems in socialization, and finds it hard to hang out with other children, because they feel different, all of which quite likely results in isolation and exclusion from the environment. Children with developmental difficulties face what they cannot do on a daily basis, just like their parents. It will be much easier for them if we encourage them to focus on what they can actually do – not on what they cannot.

The implementation of the project is co-financed by EU, from the European Social Fund. 

For further information on EU funds, please visit the webpage of the Ministry of Regional Development and EU funds: www.strukturnifondovi.hr