July 7 – 11, 2025, Ancient Olympia, Greece
Harvard’s Center for Hellenic Studies in Greece and the US (CHS), the International Olympic Academy (IOA), in collaboration with Harvard Athletics, University of Patras, and Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sport at the University of Texas at Austin, and with the support of Harvard’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs and AEGEAS Non-Profit Civil Company offer the Sport and Education Program: From Ancient Olympia to the Present. The Program is under the auspices of the General Secretariat of Sport, Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, Hellenic Republic. It will be held between 7-11 of July 2025, at the premises of the IOA in Ancient Olympia.
Description
Following the successful completion of the program’s first cycle in 2024, as well as the longstanding collaboration between CHS and the IOA, the Program will bring a diverse body of students and faculty together in Olympia, the birthplace of the Olympic Games, to examine how sport shaped ancient models of knowledge, and how, in turn, the ancient athletic-knowledge complex, known as paideia, served as a model for modern universities and professional sports.
See more information about the Sport and Education Program 2025.
Program faculty
- Charles Stocking, Academic Director of the Sport and Education Program, Associate Professor at the Department of Kinesiology and Health Education, University of Texas at Austin, and Associate of the Center for Hellenic Studies, Harvard University
- Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht, Albert Guérard Professor in Literature, Emeritus, Stanford University, Distinguished Professor of Romance Literatures, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, and Distinguished Emeritus Professor, Universität Bonn
- Jan Todd, Fellow in the Roy J. McLean Fellowship in Sport History, Department Chair in Kinesiology and Health Education at University of Texas at Austin, and Director at the H. J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports, Austin Texas
Guest speakers
- George Mavrotas, Secretary General of Sports, General Secretariat of Sport, Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, Hellenic Republic, Associate Professor at the National Technical University of Athens, and Former Captain of the Greek Water Polo Team
- Mark Schiefsky, C. Lois P. Grove Professor of the Classics, and Director of the Center for Hellenic Studies, Harvard University
- Erin West, Assistant Director of Athletics, Student-Athlete Development and Academic Integration, Harvard University
Organization and logistics
This is a non-fee-based activity, and participants will be given certificates of participation during the closing session of the Program.
Provisions: Transportation by bus from Athens to Olympia on July 7, and from Olympia to
Athens on July 11 (with intermediate stops at Patras); accommodation (double rooms), and meals (breakfast, lunch) at the IOA premises. The Organizers do not cover airfare and other incidental expenses associated with the presence and participation in the symposium, beyond those described above.
Details about transportation and accommodation will be shared with the participants in due time.
Application
This activity is open to up to thirty-five (35) undergraduate students in their 3rd year of studies and higher and postgraduate (Master’s and PhD) students from every department of Greek Universities. We welcome applicants with a demonstrated current affiliation or interest in sport. In addition to undergraduates and postgraduate students from Greece, the program will also host Harvard undergraduate student-athletes and undergraduate students from other collaborating universities in the US.
Applications(https://forms-greece.chs.harvard.edu/sport-education-program-application/) will remain open between Friday, January 24, 2025, and Wednesday, March 20, 2025 (23:59 Eastern European Time).
References must be submitted by Monday, March 24, 2025 (23:59 Eastern European Time). The selection process will conclude by April 30 and selected participants will receive acceptance messages via email, along with instructions regarding the confirmation of their participation and the submission of other related forms.
Contact information
For more information about the program and the application, please visit the Program’s website (https://greece.chs.harvard.edu/events-conferences/sport-education-program) and/or contact: summergreece@chs.harvard.edu or IOA Sessions’ Coordinator Marilena Katsadoraki (email: m.katsadoraki@ioa.org.gr, phone: +30 210 6878810).
