University of Coimbra (UC), host of the next European Universities Games 2018, was the stage of the event “Cycling Schools – Paths for the Future”, an organization of Portuguese Cycling Federation in partnership with UC. This conference took place this Saturday, in Reitoria’s Auditorium, due to the partnerships among these two institutions.

The works were targeted to cycling coaches but all affiliated with the Portuguese Cycling Federation were welcomed to this conference of debate and reflection.

Several subjects related to the cycling grassroots development were discussed: from the presence of this sport in schools to the role of coaches and parents of young athletes, going also through the model of Portuguese Cycling Federation’s cycling schools and the training methodologies for young athletes, as well as the possibility of making compatible the practice of different disciplines of cycling.

This conference had four panels and a total of nine presentations. Among the speakers were the Portuguese National Coaches of Track and XCO, Gabriel Mendes and Pedro Vigário, the teachers José Luís Algarra, António Figueiredo, Olímpio Coelho, Miguel Nery e Mário Alpiarça, and the psychologist from the National Team of Portugal, Rolando Andrade.