Jornal de Leiria – Polytechnic of Leiria already has the status of a High Performance Support Unit

The Polytechnic Institute of Leiria (IPL) already officially has the status of a Support Unit for High Performance in Higher Education (UAARESuperior).

The protocol for this project was formalized on March 21st and aims to facilitate the reconciliation between the sporting career and the academic performance of high-performance student-athletes.

“With the formalization of this protocol, the Leiria Polytechnic Institute will be even more committed to this aim of supporting our student-athletes, both in the development of their sporting career and in the promotion of their academic success, in an articulation that will be established with the diverse interlocutors and participants in sports systems and also in the context of higher education”, highlights Carlos Rabadão, president of the IPL.

UAARESuperior is a project launched in partnership by the Portuguese Institute of Sports and Youth (IPDJ) and the General Directorate of Higher Education (DGES), with the purpose of developing formal and structural support mechanisms to promote dual careers in institutions of higher education, allowing student-athletes to reconcile sporting success and academic success.

The protocol formalization ceremony took place in Coimbra and was attended by the former Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Elvira Fortunato, the former Deputy Minister and Parliamentary Affairs, Ana Catarina Mendes, the Secretary of State for Youth and of Sports, João Paulo Correia, the president of IPDJ, Vítor Pataco, the director general of DGES, Joaquim Mourato, and the interim national coordinator of UAARE, Victor Pardal.

In a press release, the IPL highlights the work developed in recent years “in favor of student-athlete status”, an example of which is the Student-Athlete Seal, awarded in 2023, or the Ethical Flag certification, in 2022, both granted by IPDJ.