Firea Elena

About

Graduate of ICF, class of 1951. She defended her doctorate in educational sciences at the University of Bucharest (1998). She practiced competitive artistic gymnastics, being selected for the national team (1950-1951). After graduating from ICF, she was hired as an assistant at the Department of History, Theory, Methodology, and Organization of Physical Education and, over time, climbed all the academic ranks, becoming a university professor. In 1980, she was elected dean, and in 1984, rector of IEFS, being the first female professor in the institute's history to be entrusted with this position. In 1990, she founded the faculties of physical education and sports within the Ecological University and the "Spiru Haret" University in Bucharest. As a teacher, she contributed to the training of 49 graduating classes of specialists (teachers and coaches) and to their promotion in the specific hierarchy of Romanian education and sports. She is the author of the course "General Bases of School Physical Education and Sports Methodology" and co-author of the work "The Unified System for Testing and Evaluating Students (SUVA)". She was also part of the team of specialists who developed "Terminology of Physical Education and Sports" (an extensive dictionary comprising 200 terms rendered in 6 languages – Romanian, French, Spanish, German, English, and Russian), published by Ed. Stadion, in 1973. Aspects of the circadian rhythm in IEFS students, The biopedagogical value of physical education lessons, The evolution and development trends of physical education and sports science, The assessment of the somato-functional and motor level of the school population in Romania using EUROFIT tests constitute only a part of the almost 200 studies, reports, and articles that have been published in specialized press or at various scientific meetings. As an international sports gymnastics (artistic) referee, he participated in the Olympic Games, World Championships, and World Cups organized between 1955 and 1990. She was: vice-president of the FRG and a member of the executive board of CNEFS (1986-1990); president of the FRG refereeing college (1970-1980); president of the IEFS sports clubs (1984-1990) and of the Ecological University (1996-2000). She has been awarded a series of distinctions, including the "Labor" Medal and "Sports Merit".