To members of EDbU’s Executive Committee, Begen Norway, 09-12.10.2008
Official Report
from Dimitar Parapanov EDbU‘s auditor, president of NADbB, on draft agenda item 13
Referred to: The First European Festival of Specific Abilities of Deaf-blind People, Varna, Bulgaria, September 1-9 2008
Dear colleagues,
The first European Festival of Specific Abilities of Deaf-blind People was held on September 1-9 in the town of Varna, Bulgaria. That scheme of large dimensions incorporated several events as follows:
- The Second European Chess Championship for Deaf-blind People – September 1-4 2008
- The First European Amateur Art Festival for Deaf-blind People – September 5 2008
- The First European Track-and-Field Athletics and General Physical Branches Competition – September 6-7 2008
- 1st Conference entitled “ Sports and Culture – means for social integration of deaf-blind people” – September 8 2008
- International Sports Federation of Persons with Deaf-blindness -Establishing Assembly’s 1st session – September 8 2008
The teams of Bulgaria, Russia, Norway and Scotland participated in the Second European Chess Championship of the Deaf-blind people. The final position assumed the following mode:
4th place – Scotland
3rd place- Norway
2nd place – Russia
1st place – Bulgaria
Along with the chess euro-championship was run The 7th National Bulgarian chess championship for persons with deaf-blindness. Four local organizations’ teams participated in. The Doulovo/Shoumen’s team gained 4th place, bronze medal for Varna, Sofia won the silver, Plovdiv is the national champion.
Russia, Norway and Bulgaria took part in the First Amateur Art Festival of the Deaf-blind people. Pretty naturally Bulgarians in the capacity of hosts represent themselves in all kind of festival’s genres: folk singing, old-time urban songs, pantomime, synchronous singing with sign language, evergreens etc. – as individual performers, duos and formations. Russian guests performed in the genres of pantomime, synchronous singing with sign language, folk singing and presented works at the fine and applied arts exhibition exhibition. Jorunn Elvebakk, a lady from Norway, presented her knitwear works at the fine and applied arts exhibition. The jury presented to performers mostly gold, silver and bronze medals.
17 branches were incorporated in the First European Track-and-Field Athletics Championship. For the first time Bulgarian athletes competed in darts and rubber rings, the arm-wrestling tournament took place for second time. Contestant fought hard for top prizes. Norway’s team took 3rd place, Russia’s -second, and Bulgaria’s team headed the list.
Simultaneous Bulgarian national ranking was held along with the international. Participants from 17 local organisations of totally 26 belonging to NADbB competed. Athletes from Dobrich gained bronze medal, Plovdiv’s team is the runner-up, the gold prize went to Varna’s contestants.
Conference, under the title of | Sports and culture – means of integration of the deaf-blind took place within the framework of euro-festival on September 8 2008. Presentations were delivered by the scientific advisor Sergey Sirotkin, president of EDbU, the secretary-general Geir Jensen, Natalia Kremneva, president of Usher Forum – Russia, Maya Nikolova, PhD Sports activities for disabled people , Mimi Avramova, speech-language therapist in Helen Keller National Rehabilitation Centre for Persons with Deaf-blindness and the president of NADbB – Dimitar Parapanov.
The main conclusion based on presentations implies that sports and culture appear to be realistic possibility for the social integration of people with deaf-blindness.
International Sports Federation of Persons with Deaf-blindness -Establishing Assembly’s 1st session, was held right after the conference. The presidents of the national associations of Norway, Croatia, Russia and Bulgaria attended the meeting. It was approved a cultural organization to be founded after establishing the international sports organization of persons with deaf-blindness.
The second session shall take place very soon, here in Bergen, third one is scheduled for Budapest in March 2009. The meetings aim is a Constitution to be constructed and approved and management to be elected.
Then a country should be chosen as well to host the legal registration.
Last festival’s day offered participants sight-seeing trip to the lovely Bulgarian town of Balchik. We visited there the intriguing Palace of a Romanian queen and the world-famous Botanical garden. After the excursion our foreign guests were seen off at the air-port and railway station.
Unarguably The First European Festival of Specific Abilities of Deaf-blind People is a nice start for making sports and culture popular amongst people with deaf-blindness. The most important thing is that the unbending spirit and friendship are the true winners.
03.10.2008
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
Dimitar Parapanov
President, NaDbB
Geir Jensen
President, FNDB