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Career Country leads the way when it comes to developing talented youths in the areas of culture and sports, and a concerted effort is made within the municipality to provide talented young people with optimal conditions for nurturing and pursuing their talent without compromising their studies.
Starting in the 2005–2006 school year, young athletes in Esbjerg aged 13 to 16 were the first in Denmark to be given an opportunity to combine their studies with elite sports activities. The purpose is to improve the combination of school and sports to optimise the opportunities of elite sports students for fully developing their talent. The project substantially increases the amount of time spent on training by the young talents and excellently combines elite sports with education. To one football player alone, this means up to 150 additional practice sessions a year on a grass pitch – sessions focusing on basic skills and long-term processes!
Elite sports classes have been started in forms 7–10 at Vestervangsskolen and involve elite sports pupils from six different disciplines: football, team handball, ice hockey, badminton, swimming and tennis. Vestervangsskolen is only three kilometres from Sport & Event Park Esbjerg, the home pitch of Esbjerg’s elite clubs and where many practice sessions are held.
The offer applies to girls and boys in the sports of badminton, tennis, swimming and team handball. Only boys are admitted to schemes for football and ice hockey, however. Up to 25 pupils participate in each class after completing a special enrolment procedure.
The stars of tomorrow are enrolled in the project. In addition to three weekly morning practice sessions, the pupils are given physiotherapeutic screening, special classes in diet and nutrition, physical training led by a qualified fitness coach, an elite sports-class ID card entitling them to free admission to games and competitions held by the six sports clubs and much more besides.
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