Every year, in the months leading up to World Diabetes Day (WDD), and on the day itself, the Slovenian Diabetes Association (SLODA) organises several initiatives to raise awareness of diabetes.
Diabetes knowledge competitions
In September, the association held a seminar about diabetes, healthy eating and the importance of physical activity for primary and secondary school teachers. The seminar was attended by 192 teachers who then went on to prepare their students for the annual intra-school competition on knowledge about diabetes. The Annual intra-school competition took place in October, and will be followed in November by the annual national competition. Every year, the competition proves to be an excellent initiative to educate young people and their families about diabetes prevention and the importance of healthy lifestyles.
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Collaboration with amateur radio operators
On November 14, the Slovenian Diabetes Association, in collaboration with the Association of Radio Amateurs of Slovenia, will celebrate World Diabetes Day for the 24th year in a row, by broadcasting on the special radio stations S55T and S50G to raise public awareness of diabetes at the national and international levels. The two stations will transmit with increased activity on November 12, 13, and 14 on most radio amateur frequencies.
Since the launch of this initiative, about 200,000 contacts with “radio-amateur active” countries were made and about tens of thousands of messages about diabetes were broadcast.
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Cycling for diabetes
On July 24, 126 cyclists from 21 cycling teams participated in the oldest international cycling race in Slovenia, the 54th Grand Prix of Kranj – Filp Majcen memorial (GP Kranj 2022). The Italian cyclist, Andrea Peron, cycled the first 160km of the race. He is a member of “Team Novo Nordisk” from the USA, which is the world’s first professional cycling team entirely composed of people living with type 1 diabetes. The team, which also includes Joonas Henttala, Declan Irvine, Peter Kusztor, Umberto Poli and Filippo Ridolfo, returned to Slovenia three years after they first participated in the race in 2019.
Andrea Peron, 33-year-old, was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 16. He participated in the race with the goal of empowering people living with diabetes and inspiring them to follow their dreams. His words after the victory: “It’s been a long time coming. Ten years of coming so close and to finally take the win is just amazing. Phenomenal. Not just for me but for all the team and everyone around the world who lives with diabetes. This is for them too. Diabetes doesn’t hinder you and if this isn’t proof of that, then I don’t know what is.”
As part of the diabetes awareness campaign #darujemkilometre, stationary bikes were set up by the Slovenian Diabetes Association at the race site for visitors to use. The goal of the #darujemkilometre campaign is to collect a total of 384,000 kilometers, equivalent to the distance between Earth and the Moon, through various sports activities in order to raise awareness of diabetes and to encourage physical activity in the lead up to World Diabetes Day. During the GP Kranj 2022, people attending and participating in the race donated more than 250 kilometers by using the stationary bikes. The campaign will last until WDD on November 14, and it is currently being implemented across 15 hiking points in Slovenia where people can participate by hiking, running, or cycling. At each designated point, organisers monitor the number of people visiting the sites and the number of kilometers they travel. All participants are invited to take pictures at the hiking points and to share them on social media by tagging #darujemkilometre and by mentioning the number of kilometers they travelled to document their contribution to the campaign.
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