Since 2001, Eurosport has become an essential part of the activities of all the European Schools and is seen as an important step for the social and physical integration of the schools.

Eurosport takes place every second year in one of the European Schools. Within the scope of the physical activities, the hosting school determines beforehand what kind of team sports competitions will be held. Choices include football, basketball, handball and volleyball.

There are both girls and boys teams. In addition, there are badminton and table tennis mixed tournaments with three doubles teams competing against each other. At the end of the three-day-long sports competitions a duathlon tournament is held, consisting of a swimming and a running relay. In the first part, ten girls and boys swim either 50 or 100 metres – depending on the choice of the organising school – and then run 1000 metres in the same order as in the swimming relay.

In 2005, the European School Munich was the host and organiser of the competitions with its 400 participants. Besides the actual organisation of the competitions with all the activities that come along with such a big event, accommodation, catering and logistics need to be planned and coordinated, too. Thanks to the support of many colleagues, pupils, parents, friends, spouses and committee members, the European School Munich had been praised for the organisation and the success of Eurosport 2005.

Since the Eurosport event in 2007 was held in Brussels, the European School Munich team travelled to Karlsruhe in March 2009. In Karlsruhe competitions were held in the disciplines of basketball, football and table tennis. The sports event was rounded off by the final biathlon tournament.

Preparations began in September of the school year 2007/08. During their lunch break, the candidates trained regularly to become a member of the ESM Eurosport team and made considerable progress.

At the beginning of the school year 2008/09 the sports teachers chose 15 girls and 15 boys who represented the ESM at the competitions in Karlsruhe. Selection criteria included regular participation in the preparatory training, teamwork, reliability and, of course, very good performances in matches, running and swimming.

The teachers Mrs Sachs, Ms Scheiber, Mr Mussack and Mr Riesterer accompanied the team from Munich to Karlsruhe. Away from home, the young athletes were accommodated by host families. Among them were two school reporters, Stephanie Rabe and Cristina Flores, who reported on the spectacle on behalf of the ESM.

In total, 15 boys and 15 girls from the secondary school of the ESM participated in this event. The team members from Munich were tuned to maximum performance and displayed sports ambition as well as a high level of motivation. The visit to the Centre for Art and Media Technology in Karlsruhe (ZKM), the screening of short films, in which all schools shortly presented themselves, and the final awards ceremony was not only very entertaining, but rounded off the professionally organised and varied major sports event.

In 2011, the Eurosport competitions were held at the European School Frankfurt. Between 30th March and 2nd April 2011, 15 boys and 15 girls from the secondary school of the ESM competed against teams from 11 other European schools. They were accompanied by the teachers Ms Scheiber, Mr Schneider, Mr Weber and the educational advisor Mr Stie. The young athletes from Munich and many of their counterparts from the other European schools stayed in host families while some were accommodated in a youth hostel. Both lunch and dinner was mainly served in the canteen of the sports’ stadium.

The hosting school chose the disciplines of basketball, badminton, handball and biathlon. On the 31st March, the first tournaments in basketball and badminton were held in the sports stadium in Frankfurt. In the basketball match, both ESM teams performed incredibly well and easily won the first round, enabling them to reach the semi-finals. The ESM teams were strongly supported and vigorously cheered on by their fellow students.

The girls team performed very well despite very strong opponents. In the semi-finals it was defeated, but nevertheless secured a proud 4th Place. The boys, under the expert guidance of Mr Stie (former basketball pro), reached the finals with outstanding performances and were then defeated by the ES Luxembourg. Simultaneously, the badminton tournament was held. In this discipline, the ESM was less successful, but nevertheless managed to reach the 11th Place. In the evening, the athletes were given the opportunity to do sightseeing in the city of Frankfurt. A short guided city tour was organised and then the pupils were able to spend some time on their own in the city centre.

On the 1st April, the second day of the competitions, the handball tournaments were held. In this discipline the ESM boys provided a convincing performance and were only defeated in the semi-finals (4th place). The handball girls’ team fought hard and well, although they had strong opponents and finally reached the 8th Place in very close matches.

On the last day of the competitions, the biathlon tournament as well as the finals in handball and basketball were on the agenda. The 1000 metres swimming relay with 10 swimmers was also held at the public swimming pool in the stadium. The fast runners from ESM were able to make up ground for lost time in the swimming relay and achieved the 7th Place in the overall ranking.

The awards ceremony with all participants marked the end of the Eurosport event. Trophies as well as certificates were presented. Exhausted, but happy and satisfied with their achievements, the ESM students left Frankfurt. Eurosport had once again proved to be a very successful event.

...and so it should be in 2013! Therefore, preparations for the next Eurosport competition will start at the beginning of next school year.

It is not easy to become a member of the team as participating in Eurosport is a very much sought-after highlight and also provides an extraordinary experience. By the time, if not before, the actual competitions between the different European Schools teams start, everyone realises what a privilege it is to represent the European School Munich as a team member.