STUDY ON CAREER SELECTION BY FORMER ELITE ATHLETES BACKGROUND The concept of “dual career” arose from the need to help athletes in planning time management among sports, education, acquisition of financial means and social life. The athlete’s career is carried out in a given period, relatively short one, and for elite athletes this period is even shorter. In this particular context the question arising is what happens after sports career? The European Commission White Paper on Sport (2007) states the important contribution of sports to economic and social cohesion and the formation of more integrated societies. Physical education and sports are a factor in education, health and social integration in any society. Brief summary of EU POLICIES REGARDING DUAL CAREER IN SPORT General policy documents • The Communication on Sport, adopted on 18 January 2011, that sets out the Commission’s ideas for EU-level action in the field of sport1. • Study on Sports Agents in the EU (November 2009) • European Council Declaration on Sport (Annex 5 to the Presidency Conclusions of the Brussels European Council of 11-12 December 2008) • European Parliament resolution of 8 May 2008 on the White Paper on Sport (2007/2261(INI)) • The White Paper on Sport adopted in July 2007 gives the Commission's strategic orientation on the role of sport in the European Union2. • European Parliament resolution of 29 March 2007 on the future of professional football in Europe (2006/2130(INI)) • Council Declaration on the specific characteristics of sport and its social function in Europe (Nice 2000) 1 The Communication is accompanied by a Staff Working Document on the free movement of professional and amateur sportspeople in the EU. 2 Competition issues are addressed in more detail in the Staff Working Document “The EU and Sport: Background and Context” (SEC(2007) 935) and particularly in Annex I to that document “Sport and EU Competition Rules”. • Declaration on sport (number 29) annexed to the Treaty of Amsterdam amending the Treaty on European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and certain related acts. • The Helsinki Report on Sport: Report from the Commission to the European Council with a view to safeguarding current sports structures and maintaining the social function of sport within the Community framework, 10.12.1999 Articles • The application of Articles 81 and 82 EC in the sport sector3 • L'application des règles antitrust aux règles sportives by Gianfranco Rocca4. • Application of EC antitrust rules in the sport sector5. Speeches • Sport media rights (2006) by Torben Toft, European Commission • La Politique européenne de Concurrence et le Sport (2002) by Jean-François Pons6, European Commission. • Sport and Competition. Excerpts of a speech given by Mario Monti7, on 17 April 2000 One of the most important topics in the field of sports is the quality of education and professional training for performance and elite athletes. The EU supports and promotes the European objectives regarding sporting issues related to its social and educational functions, stressing the importance of developing a dual career success. 3 Competition Policy Newsletter, No 3 Autumn 2007, page 6. 4 Former Deputy Director-General, Competition Directorate-General, European Commission. [L'Observateur de Bruxelles No 62 Septembre 2005, publication de la Délégation des Barreaux de France]. 5 an update (article in the Competition Policy Newsletter No 3 Autumn 2005, page 72). 6 former Deputy Director-General, Competition Directorate-General. 7 European Commissioner for Competition Policy. CASE STUDIES AND SUCCESSFUL STORIES OF LIFE AFTER AN ELITE SPORT CAREER The withdrawing of athletes from performance activity constitutes a stage that often brings difficulties regarding the socio-professional integration and management of resources obtained from the athletic career. Analysing what the media presents, bringing to the public eye, more often, elite athletes and not so much performance athletes, we observe that the transition phase from sports career to the labour market is a phenomenon that poses problems among athletes. The success of the athletes concerned also about their professional training and personal development at the same time with the sports training, confirms the value of professional education and training in ensuring the continuity of life after withdrawing from sports career. ROMANIA • Paul CIOBĂNEL: former rugby player of the “golden generation”, diagnosed with bone cancer at the age of 37, died at the age of 75, in 2014. He has coped with all the challenges of life, fulfilled by an impeccable sports and professional career, which continued to be built even after amputation of his left leg. After a few months of the fight with illness, he returned to his sports activities, moment coinciding with the encounters of Romanian rugby team (which he was part of) with the major European powers. More than 35 years, he has been wearing a prosthesis, which incidentally or not, earned him the position of director of the factory Romhandicap, where these devices were manufactured, where he modified over 30,000 cars so that they can be used by disabled people. source, photo: https://frr.ro/2014/11/13/s-a-stins-din-viata-paul-ciobanel/ • Nadia Elena COMĂNECI, born November 12, 1961, is a Romanian Olympic gold medallist who, at the age of 14 in the Olympic games during the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, became the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10.0. In all, she received six more perfect 10s in Montreal as well as three gold medals. Four years later, she won two gold medals at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow. She won nine Olympic medals and four World Championships medals during her career. Comăneci is one of the world's best-known gymnasts and is credited with popularizing the sport around the globe. In 2000, she was named as one of the Athletes of the 20th Century by the Laureus World Sports Academy. She has lived in the United States since 1989 and is married to American Olympic gold medalist Bart CONNER. Comăneci is a well-known figure in the world of gymnastics, serving as the honorary president of the Romanian Gymnastics Federation, the honorary president of the Romanian Olympic Committee, the sports ambassador of Romania, and as a member of the International Gymnastics Federation Foundation. She and Conner own the Bart Conner Gymnastics Academy, the Perfect 10 Production Company, several sports equipment shops, and are the editors of International Gymnast Magazine. She is also still involved with the Olympic Games. During the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, one of her perfect-10 Montreal uneven bars routines was featured in a commercial for Adidas. In addition, both Comăneci and her husband Bart Conner provided television commentary for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Prior to the 2016 Summer Olympics games in Rio de Janeiro, Comăneci appeared in a TIDE advertisement called “The Evolution of Power”. She also offered daily analysis of the 2016 games, for the late night show “É Campeão”, broadcast on Brazil's SporTV. In addition, Comăneci is highly involved in fundraising for a number of charities. She personally funded the construction and operation of the Nadia Comăneci Children's Clinic, a clinic in Bucharest that provides low-cost and free medical and social support to Romanian children. In 2003, the Romanian government appointed her as an honorary consul general of Romania to the United States to deal with bilateral relations between the two nations. In addition, both Comăneci and Conner are involved with The Special Olympics. source, photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadia_Com%C4%83neci • Mihai Claudiu COVALIU, born 5 November 1977 in Brasov, is a Romanian retired sabre fencer, Olympic champion in 2000 and world champion in 2005, and coach of the Romanian men’s sabre team. He was also president of the Romanian Fencing Federation, until winning the Presidency of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee, on the 15th of November 2016. After Beijing, Covaliu retired to become the head coach of the Romanian sabre team. Under his training, Romania won the silver medal in the 2009 European Championships at Plovdiv, then the gold and the silver medal at the World Championships in Antalya. For this performance, Covaliu was made a knight in the Order of Faithful Service. Cosmin HANCEANU and Romania earned the silver at the 2010 World Fencing Championships in Paris, and Romania finished second in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. Covaliu was afterwards promoted to the rank of officer of the Order of Faithful Service. In April 2013, Covaliu was elected president of the Romanian Fencing Federation after incumbent Ana PASCU decided not to run again. He remained the coach of the men’s sabre team, who earned the silver and the bronze individual medal at the 2013 World Fencing Championships in Budapest. The same year, Covaliu was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the International Fencing Federation. Source,photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mihai_Covaliu • Ivan PATZAICHIN, born 26 November 1949, is a Romanian canoe racing coach and retired sprint canoeist. He took part in all major competitions between 1968 and 1984, including five consecutive Olympics, and won seven Olympic and 22 world championship medals, including four Olympic gold medals. This makes him the most decorated Romanian canoeist of all times. He later worked as a canoeing coach, attending five more Olympics in this capacity. In 1990 he was awarded the Olympic Order, and in 2006 he was included in the list of 100 Greatest Romanians of all time by a nationwide poll. He is nowdays considered the Champion-promoter of the Danube Delta (“I want to reconnect the people with the nature and to have as key instrument in this endeavour the canotca. Canotca will become a Delta messenger”.