IDEAL - Intellectual Disability and Equal Opportunity for Active and Long Term Participation in Sport (IDEAL)

In an IDEAL world, everyone has the right to participate on an equal basis with others in society. However, the reality in many EU countries is that the majority of young people with an intellectual disability (ID) still find it hard to access sport (European Commission White Paper on Sport, 2010). They have fewer opportunities for full and equal participation, and limited opportunity to specialize/excel in the activity of their choice. Being active is a public health priority focus by the EU, but having an ID is related to lower general activity rates, and a vulnerability factor for poor health. The main aim of the IDEAL project was to address these inequalities, and to identify the common key factors underlying active lifestyle & participation, on the continuum from activities of daily living, over recreation to elite sports, in young people with intellectual disabilities (ID). The identification of gaps between empirical findings and theoretical background took place on three levels, in order to encompass a holistic view on factors contributing to active lifestyle and sport participation. To disseminate the result of the review on the micro-level, a twofold approach was taken. We translated the outcomes into an infographic to reach a wide audience of interested parties (coaches, caregivers, athletes, …) and published a systematic literature review in a scientific journal to reach the scientific community. An international research seminar was organized on the topic: “Common factors underlying sports participation in people with ID: motivation, self-regulation, self-determination and pacing”. One of the other novelties within the IDEAL project was to showcase elite athletes with ID, acting as role models for all individuals with ID across the EU. On the meso level, the IDEAL project focused on the coach, and the athlete-coach relationship, as the latter was identified as the main facilitator of long-term involvement in sport. We created evidence-based, high quality resources. In the first phase, we developed a user’s friendly database, on the basis of an extensive review performed of the existing literature, on-line resources and bespoke courses for coaches wishing to work with athletes with ID. In the second phase, we developed our own “IDEAL” resources for coaches working with athletes with ID and autism. A good practice guide was developed with insights for coaches how to apply theoretical frameworks into coaching practice, together with four sport-specific manuals. On the macro level the consortium strived to identify the IDEAL structure for the organization of ID-sport. Data from 29 organisations was collected, analysed and compared in a large study conducted in ten EU-countries. It is impossible to find a country with an IDEAL structure, neither to provide a fixed IDEAL guideline that would successfully work for all countries across Europe. However, there are general recommendations that organisations and stakeholders involved in ID-sport across Europe should considered in order to improve the current situation and development of ID-sport in their countries. These recommendations are presented in detail in the guidelines and recommendations of the project.