- EDYG 2026 Report - Belgian Deaf Futsal U19Day 1 - Journey to HanoverWe got up early this morning for our trip to Hanover. We gathered the players and staff at various pick-up points in Ghent and Antwerp. Next, we drove via Brussels and Liège towards Germany.The atmosphere was great right from the start. The players were enthusiastic and ready for the big adventure: EDYG 2026 in Hanover!After a long drive, we finally arrived in Hanover, where we continued to prepare for the coming days. The first kilometers of our EDYG adventure have been covered.After our arrival in Hanover, we immediately took to the field at 5:30 PM for our first training session. Under the guidance of national coach David, the team completed their first training.This was followed by an important administrative moment: all players and staff members went for identity verification at EDSO. The necessary documents and data have been checked, so that everyone is officially ready for the start of EDYG 2026. This participation in EDYG 2026 would not be possible without the amazing support we have received. A big thank you to G-sport, KBVB, our donors, and all parents for their support, trust, and commitment.Without your help, we would not be able to experience this wonderful adventure. A long journey, immediate training, and then the official check: the preparation has begun!ROAD TO EDYG 2026 – HANNOVER

In the summer of 2026, EDSO, in cooperation with the German Deaf Youth Sports Federation, will host the very first edition of the European Deaf Youth Games!It will take place in the city of Hanover, located 480 km from Brussels, from 17 to 23/08/2026.The competitions is open to ages from 14 to 18.The following sports will offer a competition:AthleticsBadmintonBasketball 3x3Beach VolleyballFutsalJudoKarateOrienteeringSwimmingTable TennisTaekwondoTennisYoung people interested in participating in these European Games may contact Lieven Kind by e-mail : topsport@deafsport.beAll athletes will stay in one youth hotel, making it easy to establish contacts with other young people from our neighbouring countries!

 Officially, the Games from 1924 to 1965 were called the International Silent Games in English or Jeux Internationaux Silencieux in French.... From 1969, it was called the World Games for the DeafThe Games first took place in 1969 in an area under communist rule in Yugoslavia: Belgrade. 1. 189 athletes from 33 countries (Belgium, France, Netherlands, Great Britain, Italy, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Switzerland, Greece, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, East Germany, West Germany, Turkey, Soviet Union, Israel, Japan, Iran, India, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela, Canada and the USA) participated in these Games with sports such as athletics, basketball, diving, gymnastics, handball, volleyball, swimming, football, cycling, shooting, table tennis and tennis. Colombia & Venezuela participated in the Pacific Games for the first timeNotable facts were:  for the first time, handball and volleyball featured as new sports!for the first time more than 1,000 athletes were present, namely 1,189 athletes, a record that was not broken until 1981 in Cologneat these Games it was the last time diving was offered as a sport.there were 3 top athletes at these Games: - Athletics: Josef Foldessy (HUN) in the 100m and 200m,- Swimming: Frederick Savinsky (USA) with 5 gold medals,- Gymnastics: Anatoly Vaganov (SOV) with 8 gold medals.Furthermore, Yugoslavia's football team also shone with a 5th consecutive gold medal as did USA in basketball!In the medal standings, we saw : the Soviet Union finished in 1st place with 96 medals (40 gold, 34 silver and 22 bronze), while USA came in second with 69 medals (22 gold, 24 silver and 23 bronze) and Italy took 3rd place with 35 medals (14 gold, 9 silver and 12 bronze). Belgium participated with 30 athletes and did not win a single medal:Tennis    - Lucien Gerin (°1945) : singles & doubles (with Joseph Goldwirt)   - Joseph Goldwirt (°1920) : Double (with Lucien Gerin)   - Josette Robinson (°1941) : singles (6th place).Cycling   - Bernard Deschamps (°1934) : Individual time trial (8th place), Individual road race and 1,000m Sprint (9th place).   - Xavier Van Hecke (°1943) :  Individual time trial (5th place), Individual road race and 1,000m Sprint. Basketball with 7th place    Belgium vs Italy = 49-62    Belgium vs USA = 29-57    Belgium vs Yugoslavia = 42-63    Belgium vs Israel = 37-54Players : Jean-Claude Billen (°1941), Pierre D'hoe (°1940), Pierre Dewit (°1940), Isaak Dorn (°1934), Jean Masfrancx (°1943), Edmond Rousseau (°1941), Roland Van den Bogaert (°1936), Daniel Van Synghel (°1953) and Urbain Werbrouck (°1931). Football with 14th place    Hungary vs Belgium = 4-3    Netherlands vs Belgium = 3-2    Belgium vs Israel = 3-0Players : Roger Damoiseau (°1948), Jean-Pierre De Groote (°1948), Amaat De Ro (°1935), Paul De Weerdt (°1946), Werner Deschamps (°1934), Rene Devos (°1942), Georges Dondelinger (°1946), Gustaaf Elsermans (°1941), Marc Engels (°1949), Pierre Laurent (°1946), Jacques Manderick (°1947), Willy Seeuws (°1924), Boni Sempels (°1937), Joseph Van den Bergh (°1943), Etienne Van Weymeersch (°1946) and Christian Vincent (°1956).