The My Sporting Heritage project, funded by the Erasmus+ Sport programme, is dedicated to the study, valorisation, and dissemination of Europe’s sporting heritage. Launched in 2024 and scheduled to run until the end of 2026, the project aims to identify, preserve, and promote a cultural heritage linked to sport that, despite being rich and widespread throughout Europe, remains little known to the general public.

The concept of “sporting heritage” encompasses both the tangible aspects of sport—such as objects, equipment, archives, museums, and historical sites—and the intangible aspects, such as sporting traditions, physical practices, values, and collective memories linked to European sporting culture. The project aims to highlight how sport is not just a physical activity or a form of entertainment, but also a significant component of the cultural and social identity of European countries. In this sense, sports heritage is interpreted as a tool for strengthening a sense of belonging to Europe and promoting shared values ​​such as fair play, cooperation, and inclusion.

The website project (https://my-sporting-heritage.eu) presents the project’s main activities, which include scientific research, international events, digital educational tools, and dissemination initiatives. One of the first events organized as part of the project was an international workshop held in September 2024 at the University of Amsterdam, during which scholars from various European countries discussed the historical and cultural characteristics of sport in their respective national contexts.

A key aspect of the project also involves the development of digital educational resources, especially for young people. A virtual exhibition dedicated to European sporting heritage was also created to connect local traditions from different countries with a broader European perspective. This digital exhibition explores objects, stories, and sporting practices that have contributed to the continent’s sporting culture. Alongside the virtual exhibition, the project also includes the creation of a digital educational kit for teachers, educators, and cultural workers. This kit includes educational activities and interactive games—such as an escape game and a geocaching trail—designed to engage students from different ages, and encourage them to discover the history and values ​​of sport in a participatory and creative way.

The project’s coordination is entrusted to the Musée National du Sport in Nice, a French institution dedicated to the preservation and valorisation of sporting memory. Partners include organizations and research institutions such as the University of Amsterdam, the Michael Culture association, the Sport & Citizenship think tank, the European Cultural Route of Sport Association, and the Radiona organization. These organizations combine expertise in the fields of sport history, sports policy, cultural heritage valorisation, and digital innovation.

The virtual exhibition of sports champions’ stories on the My Sporting Heritage project website represents definitely one of the most significant initiatives for the valorisation of Europe’s sporting heritage. This collection of biographical and historical narratives aims to make the stories of athletes and emblematic sports figures accessible to the public, demonstrating how their personal and sporting experiences have contributed to the cultural and social identity of sport in Europe.

The champions’ stories are conceived not only as sporting biographies, but as true documents of cultural heritage, capable of testifying to the values, practices, and historical contexts linked to the development of various sports disciplines. In this sense, the digital collection is part of the project’s broader mission, which aims to identify, preserve, and promote Europe’s sporting heritage, making it more visible and accessible to both scholars and the general public.

The exhibition is based on a digital narrative that combines diverse elements: biographical texts, archival images, historical materials, and sometimes multimedia content. Through this approach, the stories of champions are presented not simply as tales of victories and sporting records, but as broader testimonies that allow us to understand the cultural, political, and social context in which the athletes operated. The personal stories of athletes thus become a tool for exploring the evolution of sports practices, the transformations of European societies, and the role of sport in building shared values.

One of the most interesting aspects of the collection is its European and comparative nature. The stories do not focus on a single country or discipline, but rather connect experiences from different national contexts. In this way, the platform allows us to observe similarities and differences between the sporting traditions of various European countries, while also highlighting the existence of a common heritage. Indeed, through the biographies of the champions, recurring themes such as fair play, competitive spirit, personal commitment, and the ability of sport to overcome social and cultural barriers emerge.

The virtual exhibition is also designed as an educational and outreach tool. These materials can be used by teachers, educators, and cultural professionals to introduce students and the public to the history of sport and its values. The goal is to demonstrate how athletes’ stories can become an effective means of narrating Europe’s cultural history and promoting sports participation among young people.

Another distinctive feature of the exhibition is its digital format, which allows for broad and inclusive access. By publishing the stories online, the project makes content freely accessible to users from various countries. This choice reflects the desire to transcend the geographical limitations of traditional museum collections and disseminate European sporting heritage internationally. The digital format also allows for continuous updating of the collection, integrating new stories, documents, and research materials.

Overall, the digital collection of champions’ stories represents an important tool for understanding the role of sport in European history. Through the individual experiences of athletes, the project highlights the cultural value of sport, demonstrating how it is not merely a competitive practice, but also a social phenomenon capable of influencing identity, collective memory, and relationships between peoples. In this way, the champions’ stories become an integral part of Europe’s cultural heritage and contribute to strengthening awareness of the historical and cultural dimension of sport.