The project “Run – Swim – Learn! In the Spirit of Pierre de Coubertin” was inspired by and capitalised on the results of a transnational Erasmus+ project entitled Coubertin Academy - Social Inclusion through Sport Values, which took place for two years and a half, starting from 1 January 2020 and ending on 30 June 2022. It was interlinked with the national perspective of sport policies in Slovakia, Poland, and Estonia, while taking into account the policies developed on the international levels.

Coubertin Academy - Social Inclusion through Sport Values was a Slovak flagship in the field and focused on both non-governmental and governmental levels, striving to diminish a barrier between those two sectors in the field of sport and foster mutual discussions. Of particular note was the recent attention some governments across the world are giving to social inclusion through sport values. Its strategic objective was to elaborate notably the Council Conclusions on promoting the common values of the EU through sport, adopted at the 2018 EYCS meeting in Brussels.

The project Coubertin Academy - Social Inclusion through Sport Values was recalling that the European Union is a common space to build a prosperous and peaceful area of co-existence and respect for diversity based on the common values of the EU namely respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities recognised by Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union. These values are common to the Member States in a society in which pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity and equality between women and men prevail.

The project was considering that values lie in the core of the European Union. The Council Conclusions on promoting the common values of the EU through sport (2017) aim to strengthen mutual understanding of the concept of common values among Member States, develop the sense of belonging to the European Union as well as promote, where appropriate, those values outside the EU, while creating a solid basis for people-to-people dialogue across the European borders. Organised and non-organised sport, alongside with education, youth work and culture, can play a role to promote the common values of the EU.

In the next parts of this portal, we would like to introduce the most significant activities organised within the framework and under the auspices of the Slovak project partners, notably in light of the project Coubertin Academy - Social Inclusion through Sport Values. You can find here information about such initiatives as Ivan Luknár Trophy, Sakura Challenge, School Pentathlon for Sport, Tolerance and Fair Play and many others. Feel free to find inspiration in it for your work and use it in your next activities in the field of education in and through sport.

Slovak – Japanese partnerships in the field of education in and through sport started in 2021 with a Sakura challenge, which represented a photo contest with a motive of cherry blossom blooming. It was open for a general public and project partners of the project Coubertin Academy – Social Inclusion through Sport Values had an opportunity to share information about it with their members, stakeholders, athletes, students, or any other target group they worked with. Many of them actively participated and captured nice pictures that were relevant to the competition status. Finally, they won great prizes! 

When Japan is mentioned, many imagine cherry blossom blooming. The Olympic torch in the shape of sakura leaves, a typical symbol of the country of rising sun, was the inspiration for a photo competition called The SAKURA Challenge. Thanks to the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo, its theme for 2021 was naturally linked to Japan and sporting values.

Cherry blossom blooming, so typical for Piešťany, also appealed to pupils and students of the Pierre de Coubertin Secondary School in Piešťany. With their photo lens, they captured sports values, such as friendship, respect, tolerance, or joy found in effort.

Initiator and coordinator of the whole event, Eva Corticelli, told us that they also gained inspiration from the results of the transnational project Coubertin's Academy - social inclusion through sports values, in which the school participated. The project, co-financed by the European Union through the Erasmus + program, aimed to reach the younger generation, promote various forms of inclusion through sport and explain the values ​​of the European Union. And young artists have really succeeded in this through their contributions.

Many participants in the photo competition added interesting stories to the photos. Rebecca, for example, wrote that Sakura is also associated in Japanese culture with the term "mono no aware," an empathy for things that she thinks is important to mention, because being empathetic is the key to a long-lasting friendship.

Photos submitted to the competition were published on the Facebook page of the Pierre de Coubertin Secondary School. They were evaluated by an expert jury and awarded during the Olympic Day 2021 as well as Park Foto Exhibition in September 2021. The stories captured in the photographs travelled not only to various countries of the European Union, which are part of the worldwide network of Pierre de Coubertin schools but also to the Japanese sport and educational institutions. The best photographs were exhibited to the public in Piešťany during the Park Foto exhibition. Their authors received valuable prizes. In addition, motifs of Japan and sports values ​​decorated the new premises of the Pierre de Coubertin Grammar School in Piešťany.

Combining art and sport was also a current challenge for the Slovak Olympic Academy. After all, art belongs to sport in the same way as sport to art. The SAKURA Challenge photo competition was one of its pilot activities related to culture and sports. Thanks to the photos, enchantment with blossoming cherries accompanied us throughout the 2021. We enjoyed them a lot.

Regarding the Sakura challenge you can get more information on the Facebook page VALUES: https://www.facebook.com/SportValuesOfficial/