02/14/2026
While in Rome for the Sports Diplomacy Exchange 🇮🇹⚽️
“We first visited the Centro Sportivo Italiano (CSI), a volunteer-based nonprofit that promotes sport as a tool for education, growth, commitment, and social integration. We toured their facility and learned about programs ranging from volleyball, padel, and swimming to school and prison initiatives, primarily focused on the youth but designed to help all individuals build confidence by discovering the best of themselves and value who they are with the educational mission of tailoring the program to meet each athlete’s age and needs.
We also heard from leaders at Unversita Foro Italico, where adaptive sports like wheelchair rugby, Judo, and integrated basketball for people with and without disabilities together–demonstrate the true impact of inclusive sport in action. After, we toured the University’s facilities and had lunch with members from the Embassy at Terrazza Bar del Tennis.
In the afternoon, we met with the founder and federal coach of Crazy for Football, Italy’s national five-a-side futsal team supported by the Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC) for athletes with mental health conditions. Fully sponsored by the federation and now including a women’s team, the program combines elite competition with therapeutic support. They compete in the Dream World Cup, an international event that challenges stigma surrounding mental health and promotes sport as psychiatric rehabilitation–living out the belief, as one athlete shared, that removing economic and social barriers is essential for everyone to fully flourish.
Our conversations also included leaders from European Culture and Sport Organization (ECOS), who shared their work supporting youth, individuals navigating mental health challenges, and minor offenders through impactful initiatives.
We ended the day with some sightseeing and a traditional Roman dinner! Very grateful for the partnerships formed on this trip and the powerful reminder that sport creates belonging for everyone. 🙌 -Sadie”
