Exploring partnerships in Riga and Finland: A snapshot of our recent FOCUS Project Visits
In our most recent travels, the NYSA Sweden team, led by Owen Southgate, embarked on a dynamic visit to both Latvia and Finland. Our aim was to strengthen ties and deepen collaboration with our partners in the Focus project, particularly the RFS football club in Riga and the renowned sports institutions in Finland, including Kisakallio and the Sports Institute of Three Campuses.
Our Finnish leg of the journey was enriched by having NYSA Sweden’s David McDermott and Ben Tew on site alongside SITC development Manager Akki Matti Alanen at the Kisakallio campus. Together, they created a vibrant exchange of knowledge around Sports Education and dual careers, blending professional discussion with informal moments, like a traditional lakeside sauna session. This blend of formal and casual interactions really underscored the collaborative spirit of our time there. In Addition to these experiences, visits to Helsinki’s National Olympic Training Center (URHEA) and the Pajulahti facility gave us real insight into the wonderful work being done in Finland to enable young athletes to define success in and through sport, on their terms.
We also visited NUPS, a local football club in Nummela, thanks to Akki Matti’s connections. It was inspiring to see how they are working with the Sports Institute of Three Campuses to develop sports science resources for their athletes. Additionally, we spoke with FC Lahti United about their ambitions and the future of elite football in Finland.
In Riga, Latvia, our focus turned to our partnerships with RFS and the Student Athlete Federation, LUSF. Again, the FOCUS Erasmus+ project was central to our conversations which included discussing our collaboration towards an internal Dual Career Program launching in January 2026, RFS DC. Thanks go to Egils Truselis and Kitija Senkane for taking the time to help us define the next steps of the FOCUS project from the Latvian perspective. We look forward to returning soon to Riga for the EAS DC conference held at Latvia University in October to present the FOCUS project to the European Dual Career Network.
A special highlight was meeting two interns from the University of Murcia (UCAM) who were completing their sports science internship. Seeing Kostas and Celeste wrap up their three-month stint, where they’d been providing strength and conditioning as well as physiotherapy services to the club, was incredibly rewarding. We had played a key role in setting up this internship, and it was great to see it come full circle with positive feedback and valuable experiences shared by all involved.
