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. 2026 Sep 21;32:101495. doi: 10.1016/j.resplu.2026.101495

Designing and implementing the first national CPR championship in Greece: the “KIDS SAVE LIVES – TA PAIDIA SOZOUN ZOES” experience

Evangelos Chatzikonstantinou a, Anastasios Stefanakis a, Bernd W Böttiger b,c, N Rott c, P Liagkou a, N Ntagka a, K Sakkas a, C Rouska a, I Ethymiou a, E Athanasoula a, Marilena Giannoudi a,⁎
PMCID: PMC13635568  PMID: 42835327

Abstract

Background

Basic Life Support (BLS) is critical in improving survival following out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), yet survival rates remain low in countries such as Greece. Early education and community engagement are key to increasing bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) rates. The “KIDS SAVE LIVES – TA PAIDIA SOZOUN ZOES (KSL)” initiative aims to address this gap through school-based BLS training and innovative educational strategies.

Aim

To describe the implementation and evaluate the effectiveness of the first National CPR Championship for school-aged children in Greece.

Methods

This study consisted of two phases. Phase I involved the design and implementation of the KSL CPR Championship – a national, school-based competition assessing CPR skills using objective metrics via QCPR technology. Phase II included a post-event evaluation through a 24-item questionnaire distributed to participants (students, teachers, and parents), assessing perceptions, satisfaction, and educational impact.

Results

In 2025 the CPR Championship accommodated 196 schools, comprising of 432 student participants. High-quality CPR performance was observed across all school levels (mean scores: 95.7–96.3% out of 100%, with 88.2% in special needs schools). A total of 197 respondents completed the questionnaire. Most participants (94%) considered the Championship a reliable method for assessing BLS skills, while 99% agreed it was an effective training approach and should be repeated regularly. All respondents reported improved confidence in CPR skills, and 99% would recommend the program. Strong support was expressed for sustained CPR education, including in-school mannequins (99%), AED availability (96%), and mandatory national CPR training in schools (100%).

Conclusion

The KSL National CPR Championship represents an effective, engaging, and scalable approach to BLS education among schoolchildren. The initiative enhances skill acquisition, confidence, and community awareness, supporting the integration of structured CPR training into national educational policy to improve OHCA outcomes.

Introduction

Basic Life Support (BLS), comprises of a chain of actions required in a life-threatening emergency. This is typically provided by members of the public, bystanders, or first responders, until advanced medical care can take over the care of the patient.1 The core components include, but are not limited to, the recognition of a life-threatening event, the timely call for support from medical professionals, high quality cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) to support, whilst maintaining an open airway. The provision of BLS is most typically, and importantly needed, in the out-of-hospital setting, namely during out of hospital cardiac arrest (OOHCA). Immediate bystander intervention is critical for increased chance of survival, as delays while awaiting emergency services can result in multi-organ failure including irreversible brain injury within minutes due to lack of oxygen.2 The overall survival rate of OOHCA3 has historically been documented as low as 7–10%. However, the global initial return of spontaneous circulation rate over the last forty years has been quoted as high as 29.7% This higher survival rate post-OOHCA is more likely among patients who receive bystander CPR living in western countries.4 Such facts highlight that education, equipment and the desire to help a fellow human being in their time of need can truly make a difference.5

Whilst education is ever adapting, technology ever advancing, and survival ever improving, there are discrepancies across the world.6 Rural areas have been shown to have worse survival rates than their urban equivalents.7 On a bigger scale, the rates of OHCA survival differ across continents, with trends showing better survival in Europe and Oceana (approximately 10–16%) and significantly worse in Asia (approximately 3–5%).8, 9 The reasons behind this are multifold but can include: attitudes to resuscitation, access to educational events and access to technology including AEDs. In Europe for example, Greece has persistently been shown to have the lowest rates of OOHCA survival.10 BLS is typically taught by medical health care professionals, in a classroom setting as organized through humanitarian organizations. In 2015, the World Health Organization endorsed the European Resuscitation Council (ERC) KIDS SAVE LIVES initiative, recommending that all schoolchildren receive at least two hours of CPR education annually. The initiative is founded on the principle that schoolchildren represent an ideal population to contribute to bystander CPR rates and ultimately improve OOHCA survival rates.11, 12, 13

KIDS SAVE LIVES – TA PAIDIA SOZOUN ZOES (KSL) is a Hellenic humanitarian, non-profit organization, officially created in 2016. As many before them, the founders realized that to inflict change within a society, the next generation should be targeted. This was also in-keeping with the international initiative set by the ERC,14 to increase bystander CPR rates. Therefore, the aim of their work is to train all the children and young adults of Greece, motivated by volunteerism and human solidarity. The promotion of the adoption of the culture to be an active citizen, is hoped to increase the responsibility and the willingness to help others.

Prior to the creation of KSL, BLS was not taught within schools in Greece. Since 2016, KSL has reached over 5050 schools, teaching BLS to over 660,000 students and over 1000 teachers have been BLS-certified for free.15 This program is made possible thanks to the contribution of 630 ERC-certified active KSL volunteers. Initially all KSL delivered BLS teaching was through a dedicated and ERC-approved BLS workshop. However, it is well recognized that teaching does not just happen within a classroom. More specifically, it can occur through a blended approach (incorporating both online and in-person sessions), small group vs one on one, self-directed and simulation based.16, 17 KSL therefore designed and executed a National CPR Championship among students, to test these skills within the BLS skillset to make the process more enjoyable and understandable.18 Aim of this publication is to describe the success of the first National CPR Championship (initially in 2024, and continued annually), and to evaluate the events using a questionnaire.

Materials and methods

This study was performed in two phases. Phase I was the development and actioning of the KSL CPR Championship, whilst Phase II comprises of the evaluation of the event.

Phase I

The first KSL CPR Championship was held in Thessaloniki in 2024, which acted as a pilot. The aim of the event was to assess CPR skills in children in a fun, competitive basis.

To be eligible to participate, schools must have participated in the KSL ‘iSAVE Lives’ free educational program. In brief, initially developed in 2010 and officially approved by the Greek Ministry of Education in 2017, the program consists of three sections. A KSL ERC BLS accredited volunteer is assigned to a school with the task of teaching BLS during that academic year. Stage 1 comprises of: a two-hour online BLS session. Stage 2 is the: free certification of one member of school staff per school by KSL, as per ERC standards. Through this they became the school’s First Responder (FR). Finally, stage 3 consists of: a two-hour practical BLS workshop for students, led by a KSL volunteer instructor and the school’s FR. To ensure that knowledge is regularly refreshed and passed on to all children within the school, one dedicated teacher per school (usually the physical education teacher) participates in the ERC accredited BLS course for free to take on the role of the school’s FR. This was performed 2 different days during teaching hours (2 * 45 min). The first day CPR was taught and assessed by a KSL volunteer and the second by the school’s FR.

All schools, that participated in the KSL ‘iSAVE Lives’ educational program of that academic year, were eligible to sign up for KSL CPR Championship. They were invited to apply for a place in the CPR Championship via KSL’s social media accounts on, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and the KSL website (https://kidssavelives.gr/). Posts made from the official KSL account signposted participation applications and time frames for submission.

Two students from each school were chosen by their institution’s FR to participate in the championship, and represent their school nationally. On the day of the event, students from across the country competed against each other on the CPR component of the BLS algorithm over 4-min. Specifically, during this time each student performed chest compressions and ventilations in the approved ratio of 30:219 on LITTLE-ANNE mannequins alongside LAERDAL’s QCPR mobile application for two minutes, prior to their teammate taking over to complete the further two minutes. This app is designed to show volunteer instructors the quality of the compressions performed. Therefore, it was essential in maintaining objectivity of chest compression effectiveness. The scores generated by each school, were the method of assessment for agreeing which school would progress to the next phase. Every group was scored out of 100% based on QCPR data provided live straight from each mannequin. This is calculated automatically using real-time QCPR feedback data recorded by the training mannequin. The QCPR system integrates objective measures of CPR quality, including chest compression rate, depth, recoil, and other performance metrics, to generate an overall quality score.20 Competitive phases were set up by school type, for example students from primary schools competed against other primary school students. Teams with the highest score (from 0% to 100% as provided by qCPR) advanced to the subsequent round, with the top 50% progressing at each stage. This process continued iteratively until the final round. In addition to the competition results, all participating students were awarded a gold medal.

Due to the overwhelmingly positive verbal feedback of the 2024 Championship, the event evolved further the following year. Namely by ensuring that two championship events were undertaken so that more schools could participate. In 2025 therefore, two KSL CPR Championship events were held in Greece. One in Athens 6th of April covering the southern cities and islands of Greece, and a separate event in Thessaloniki held 3rd and 4th of May covering the northern cities of Greece. Both competitions were approved by the Greek Ministry of Education.

Phase II

Phase II was the distribution of a voluntary questionnaire that also served as a feedback tool, regarding demographics and individual’s experience according to Likert scale.

To have a summative overview of the event’s feedback, and continue adapting and enhancing the national CPR Championship, a formal feedback questionnaire was designed, distributed and analyzed after the second KSL CPR Championship event in 2025. A 24-question survey was designed by the KSL research group concerning the competition. This was piloted on 10 individuals within the wider KSL team Google Forms™ to assess the sequence of the questions and see how understandable these questions were. Ethical approval was granted by the University of Ioannina for dissemination to participants. The survey was also approved and sponsored by the Greek Ministry of Education.

The questionnaire link was sent via email to all participants of the 2025 Championship the day after their participation. Data was gathered on demographics and overall experience in the format of multiple choice, Likert scale and open questions.

Results

School participation

In 2024 the KSL CPR Championship was held in one city, accommodating 182 schools out of 1960 schools [1200 primary schools, 430 junior high schools, 330 senior high schools] across Macedonia (Eastern, Central and West), represented by 364 students as participants. After successfully completing this event, KSL planned the next year’s Championship.

In 2025 the KSL CPR Championship expanded to two cities accommodating 196 schools out of 1910 schools [1160 primary schools, 430 junior high schools, 320 senior high schools]21, 22 on three different dates welcoming a total of 432 student participants on both the events.

All schools that applied in time were accepted by the KSL Championship registry. There was no elimination mechanism that excluded schools from participating in the Championship event.

During the school year between 2024 Championship and 2025 there was an increase of schools participating in the event as high as 7.6% as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 1.

Fig. 1

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Number of participating schools by educational level in the KSL National CPR Championship during 2024 and 2025.

As for 2025 events the entries of schools were distributed as follows:

  • –

    Thessaloniki: 65 Primary Schools, 32 Junior High Schools, 29 Senior High Schools and 6 Schools of Special Needs for a total of 132 Schools represented by 286 students.

  • –

    Athens: 30 Primary Schools, 19 Junior High Schools, 13 Senior High Schools and 2 Schools of Special Needs for a total of 64 Schools represented by 146 students.

The overall grade given to the teams participated at the 2025 Championship for effective CPR as per the QCPR application was: 95.7% for primary schools, 95.8% for junior-high, 96.3% for high schools and 88.2% for special needs schools, Fig. 2.

Fig. 2.

Fig. 2

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Mean QCPR performance scores (%) achieved by participating schools during the KSL National CPR Championship in 2024 and 2025, stratified by educational level.

Questionnaire results

After the completion of the 2025 National CPR Championship, KSL volunteers sent out questionnaires in order to record the outcome of the event (Supplement 1).

The questionnaire was designed to capture participants' perceptions and experiences following the Championship. In addition, parents and carers were invited to complete the questionnaire to provide their own perspectives on the educational value, organization and overall impact of the event.

In total, 197 participants completed the survey of whom 85 (43%) were students among every school type, 76 (39%) were teachers and 36 (18%) of the respondents were parents / guardians. The full demographic details can be found in Table 1. 94% of all respondents reported that they thought the student Championship was a reliable form of assessing CPR skills performed by school children. The overwhelming majority (99%) of all questionnaire respondents supported that the KSL CPR Championship was an effective way of undertaking CPR training and should be repeatedly regularly.

Table 1.

Demographics of participants completing KSL Student Championship Questionnaire.

Demographic variable Demographic variable Number (%)
Gender Male 56 (28%)
Female 139 (71%)
Prefer not to say 2 (1%)



Role within Student Championship Student 85 (43%)
Parent 36 (18%)
Teacher 76 (39%)



School type Primary School 105 (53%)
Junior High School 42 (21%)
High School 48 (24%)
Special Needs Schools −
N/A 2 (1%)



Hours dedicated to CPR training prior to attending KSL National Student Championship 0–4 h 17 (9%)
5–9 h 44 (22%)
10–14 h 37 (19%)
15–19 h 29 (15%)
20+ h 47 (24%)
Other 5 (2%)
Don’t know 18 (9%)
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Almost all survey respondents (97%) reported improved self confidence in CPR skills after participation Fig. 3, with over 80% of participants reporting satisfaction with the help they received from the KSL mentors on the day of the Championship. Almost all respondents (99%) were happy to recommend the Championship to other schools, Fig. 4.

Fig. 3.

Fig. 3

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Self-reported confidence in performing CPR before participation and perceived improvement following the KIDS SAVE LIVES National CPR Championship.

Fig. 4.

Fig. 4

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Respondents' perceptions of the KSL National CPR Championship.

With regards to ongoing CPR training, 99% of respondents agreed to the presence of a mannequin within their school to maintain BLS skills over time and to prepare the younger students for next year’s KSL Championship. Lastly, 96% agreed to the presence of an automated external defibrillator was not only useful for the school, but makes the whole local community safer. Most importantly however, unanimous was the vote for CPR training to become a national requirement in schools across Greece, Fig. 5.

Fig. 5.

Fig. 5

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Respondents' views on future school-based CPR education initiatives.

Discussion

To our knowledge, this is the first national CPR championship dedicated for school-aged children. Our results show that this was an effective method for assessing CPR skills in an enjoyable way.23 Reassuringly, they are in-keeping with the existing literature reporting that Competitive CPR, particularly when supported by objective QCPR feedback, has been shown to improve learner engagement and motivation while facilitating objective benchmarking of CPR quality.24 Previous studies have demonstrated significant improvements in CPR performance following feedback-guided competitive training, and more recent work highlights competitive events as an effective educational strategy that combines participant engagement with robust performance assessment.25, 26

It has been consistently suggested that training students in BLS is expected to increase the rate of bystander CPR.27 These skills must be practiced regularly by students to maintain their knowledge and skills, ensuring they can continue to perform such skills when they have grown up. Importantly it is believed that such educational schemes have the potential to educate whole generations to respond to cardiac arrest and to increase survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. However, the evidence suggests that online training alone in BLS is not enough without the practical aspect to gain experience and be sure about the skills young students have.28 A retrospective survey analyzing effectiveness of emergency response for sudden cardiac arrest in a large high school cohort within the United States that had on-site CPR/AED programs, revealed that school-based CPR–AED programs provided a high survival rate for both student athletes and nonstudents who suffered a sudden cardiac arrest.29 This once again highlights the importance of training school aged children from a young age. Certainly, the effectiveness of our cohort’s qCPR scores reflects the effective CPR delivery from all age groups.

Our data once again reflects that of the literature, children are just as effective if not more effective than adults. BLS performance is often sub-optimal on a general population even among healthcare professionals and medical students.30 There are indications that standard BLS training accompanied with a simple, cost-effective reflective practice exercise can improve the skills that learners are receiving. Reflective practice has the potential to enhance practical skills. The free CPR Championship was an effective method for school children to enhance and practice the skills they had gained during the academic year. This can be used as an example for the other BLS training schemes to consolidate training and allow for an overview and practice of the skills gained.31 An almost 8% increase in participation in the national CPR Championship was seen from 2024 to 2025. This increase is likely due to audience growth on every KSL social media platform (Facebook, Instagram).

Consideration must be shed on the consistently high QCPR scores observed across all school categories however, and the results should be interpreted within the context of the study design. The CPR Championship was only accessible to schools that had already completed the structured KSL educational program, the participants therefore likely to represent highly motivated students who had received structured practical training and, in many cases, additional preparation before the event. Furthermore, the use of validated QCPR technology provided immediate objective feedback throughout training, enabling students to optimize CPR performance before formal assessment.29 Therefore, although the findings demonstrate that school-aged children are capable of delivering high-quality CPR following structured education, they should not be interpreted as representative of all school-aged children without similar training. This is reflected by our token of success to each participant, a gold medal, awarded irrelevant of the stage of the competition they reached. The KSL motto is that all children trained by our organization is champion, with high CPR skills, capable of saving lives.

The findings of Phase II of the study, the participant experience questionnaire highlight the strong perceived value and impact of the 2025 National CPR Championship as both an educational and evaluative initiative. The overwhelmingly positive responses across all respondents suggest that the Championship is a reliable method for assessing the delivery of CPR training. Notably, the universal improvement in self-reported confidence underscores the program’s success in enhancing participants’ competence and readiness to act in emergency situations. High levels of satisfaction with mentor support and the near-unanimous willingness to recommend the program further reinforce its acceptability and perceived quality. Additionally, the strong endorsement for sustained CPR education—evidenced by support for in-school mannequins, widespread agreement on the value of AEDs,32 and the unanimous call for mandatory national CPR training—indicates a clear recognition of the long-term benefits of such initiatives.33 Collectively, these findings suggest that structured, school-based CPR programs can play a crucial role in strengthening community health preparedness and support the integration of CPR training into national educational policy in Greece.

Overall, the KSL CPR Championship provides several educational and societal benefits. First, it enables objective assessment of students' CPR skills across different age groups, demonstrating that from approximately 10 years of age, students achieve a high level of proficiency, with no meaningful differences in performance between primary school pupils and older students. Second, it promotes teamwork and collaborative learning by encouraging participants to work together under realistic resuscitation scenarios. Third, it facilitates networking and knowledge exchange between participating schools, fostering a wider culture of resuscitation education. Furthermore, the CPR Championship increases awareness of the importance of CPR and AEDs throughout the school community, extending its impact beyond the participating students. Importantly, it represents a unique educational innovation as the world's first national school-based CPR skills competition, held under the auspices of the Greek Ministry of Education and the Hellenic Medical Association. Rather than serving solely as a competitive event, the Championship functions as an educational and public health intervention that motivates repeated skills practice, provides objective evaluation of CPR competence, enhances teamwork and self-confidence, engages the wider school community, and generates valuable data and infrastructure to support the systematic implementation and continuous development of resuscitation education within schools.

The continued expansion of the National CPR Championship has also provided valuable insights into the delivery of large-scale CPR education programs. Increasing participation has highlighted the importance of robust organizational planning, standardized instructor training, and objective assessment methods to ensure consistency across multiple venues. Future iterations should prioritize improving access for schools in rural and underserved regions, thereby promoting equitable delivery of CPR education nationwide. Furthermore, while the present study demonstrates excellent participant engagement and immediate educational outcomes, future programs should incorporate longitudinal follow-up to evaluate knowledge retention, skills maintenance, and the longer-term impact on willingness and confidence to perform bystander CPR.

Limitations

The retrospective nature of the questionnaire reflects some limitations to the study. Firstly, non-response bias cannot be excluded, as individuals who chose not to participate may have different characteristics or experiences, to those that did. This is of particular relevance as there were no respondents from children attending special needs schools. Given the retrospective nature of the questionnaire, the reasoning behind this is unclear but there is a possibility that the answers presented here may not be representative of that student population. Furthermore, relying on a parent to reply for their child may mean that we do not get the child’s full opinion. Moreover, the study relied on self-reported data, which may be subject to recall bias and social desirability bias, potentially affecting the accuracy of responses.

Conclusion

The KSL National CPR Championship demonstrates that a large-scale, school-based CPR competition is both feasible and highly acceptable when integrated into an established national BLS education program. By combining structured practical training with objective QCPR assessment and gamified learning, the Championship provides an innovative approach to reinforcing high-quality CPR skills while maintaining exceptional participant engagement. As participation continues to grow, this model offers a scalable framework that could be adapted by other countries seeking to strengthen school-based resuscitation education and ultimately contribute to improving community preparedness for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Evangelos Chatzikonstantinou: Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Resources, Project administration, Methodology, Investigation, Data curation. Anastasios Stefanakis: Supervision, Conceptualization. Bernd W. Böttiger: Supervision, Project administration. N. Rott: Supervision, Methodology. P. Liagkou: Conceptualization. N. Ntagka: Conceptualization. K. Sakkas: Investigation, Data curation. C. Rouska: Conceptualization. I. Ethymiou: Conceptualization. E. Athanasoula: Conceptualization. Marilena Giannoudi: Writing – review & editing, Resources, Project administration, Investigation, Formal analysis, Conceptualization.

Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Footnotes

Appendix A

Supplementary material to this article can be found online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resplu.2026.101495.

Appendix A. Supplementary material

The following are the Supplementary material to this article:

Supplement 1
mmc1.docx (142.8KB, docx)

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