D4.2 Report on the implementation of the institutional roadmaps, lessons learned and final 4I-GEPs

This deliverable documents the second and third phases of the SUPPORTER project: the update and implementation of the institutional roadmaps, and the development of new intersectional, inclusive, innovative and impactful Gender Equality Plans (4I-GEPs). Over 16 months, the eight sports higher education institutions involved in the project leveraged knowledge gained through tailored training, collective and bilateral mutual learning, and continuous mentoring by the core team to carry out their Grounding Actions, update their roadmaps to reflect emerging needs and insights, and prepare the ground for sustainable institutional change. Guided by iterative feedback, roadmap implementation focused on raising awareness of gender+ equality, improving data collection with an intersectional approach, dedicating institutional resources, addressing gender-based violence (GBV), embedding gender into research and curricula, and promoting inclusive organisational cultures. Institutions faced challenges such as low awareness, limited resources and resistance, but adapted effectively through stakeholder engagement and ongoing support from the project’s capacity-building activities.

Building on this process, each institution co-designed and formally adopted its own 4I-GEP. These new plans go beyond compliance with minimum EU requirements by explicitly mainstreaming GBV prevention and response as a core institutional priority, integrating intersectionality into data collection, awareness-raising, teaching and research, and tailoring gender equality actions to the specific realities of sports academia, where stereotypes, hierarchical structures and male-dominated leadership remain entrenched. By embedding inclusivity, innovation, intersectionality and impact into governance structures, curricula and professional training pathways, the 4I-GEPs position sports universities as frontrunners of cultural change. Together, they represent a decisive step towards sustainable transformation in sports academia and a meaningful contribution to the wider European sports ecosystem.