VU Faculty of Medicine researchers with colleagues at the ECSS Congress / Photo from personal archive
On July 1-4, 2025, the anniversary – 30th European College of Sport Science (ECSS) Congress took place in Rimini (Italy), organized by the ECSS Scientific Council together with the Bologna University and Padua University. At the congress, researchers of the VU Faculty of Medicine, Associate Professor Valentina Ginevičienė together with doctoral students Austėja Letukienė and Gabija Anikevičiūtė, presented scientific research on the genetics of Lithuanian and Ukrainian athletes and the endurance of overweight women in relation to body fat distribution and metabolism. They shared the research results in three presentations: „Population-specific genetic variants in Lithuanian and Ukrainian elite athletes“, „GWAS Approach to Identifying Candidate Genes for Elite Athletic Phenotype in Lithuanian Athletes“ and „Body Fat Distribution and Metabolic Response to Endurance Performance in Overweight Women“.
ECSS is one of the most prestigious sports science events in the world that gathers over 3,000 participants annually. The event’s exceptional scientific program includes the latest achievements in sports science, medicine, psychology, biomedicine and social sciences. A lot of attention is paid to promoting an interdisciplinary approach, uniting biomedical and psychosocial disciplines. This year, the event, which also included a one-day pre-conference program, widely explored topics relevant to today’s society: inactivity and aging, nutrition, motor control, and the impact of extreme environments.
Moment of the ECSS Congress / Photo by ECSS
Participation in the ECSS sections of presentations, seminars and discussions helps to discover new research directions and collaboration, allows researchers to deepen their scientific competencies and engage in the international sports science community. During the event, scientists from the VU Faculty of Medicine established new contacts and discussed joint research in the field of sports genetics with colleagues from Ukraine, Italy, Finland, South Africa and other countries. One of the participants – Austėja Letukienė – also participated in the ECSS Bengt Saltin 6 km charity run around the city of Rimini, representing Vilnius University and contributing to the initiative dedicated to AIDO Nazionale – the Italian Association for Donation and Transplantation, supporting physical activity after organ transplantation. The event highlighted the social responsibility of sports science and the importance of community spirit.
VU Faculty of Medicine Assoc. Prof. Valentina Ginevičienė and doctoral student Gabija Anikevičiūtė at the ECSS Congress / Photo from personal archive