As part of the Sport is Live campaign, which began last September at the 2nd Ljubljana Sports Festival, we published a handbook entitled More Sports, Less Screens: Recommendations for Screen Use by Young Athletes.

The project was supported by Mayor Zoran Janković, a great promoter of sport and advocate of moderate screen use.

»I support the project because it is about promoting a healthy lifestyle, which we in the City of Ljubljana are very much in favour of. I promote screen-free sports and I am very pleased that this year most of Ljubljana's elementary schools are participating in the 3rd Ljubljana Sports Festival. We want to show them that they can spend time without their cell phones, which is very important. I myself go to Golovec Hill at least three times a week and don't use a smartphone at all. In the future, we want to get as many famous names from sport as possible to be ambassadors for the project,« said Mayor Zoran Janković.

The aim of the brochure, which will be distributed to elementary school and providers within the Annual Sports Program, who will pass it on to young athletes and their parents, is to provide practical and expert advice that will help young athletes, their parents, coaches and sports clubs understand the impact of screens on young athletes. With the recommendations we want to promote responsible screen use and therefore healthy and successful development. The recommendations are based on the latest research and feedback from Slovenian sports coaches, parents and young athletes.

Increase in screen time also among young athletes

In recent years, the use of digital devices with screens has increased significantly among children and young people. Young athletes are no exception. On the one hand, screens have become an indispensable tool in sports, as they enable performance analysis, access to sports content and support communication between athletes and coaches. On the other hand, excessive and uncritical use of screens by young athletes can be detrimental to their physical and mental health and can affect their sports performance.