Baron Pierre de Coubertin, a French intellectual and founder of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), established the link between sports and education in the 19th-century and his legacy lives on.
Pierre de Coubertin earlier increased access to education and sport for young people around the world, regardless of race, nationality, and income.
He was known for his fascination with education and the role of sport, and it was this fascination that led to the establishment of the modern Olympic Games, a festival of international athleticism.
After a century of significant contribution to the growth and development of education and sport, Pierre de Coubertin’s ideas still hold strong.
In 2015, the UN General Assembly recognized the growing contribution of sport to peace and development, arguing that sports promote tolerance and respect.
Building on Pierre de Coubertin’s legacy, the Olympic committee is established and develops inclusive education programs that embody the Olympic values of excellence, respect, and friendship.
Olympic initiatives from Pierre de Coubertin legacy
Get Set: a sports participation program was established on the idea of Pierre de Coubertin, the program involved over seven million young people when it held in London in 2012.
Notably, over eight years later, Get Set still supports schools across the UK with free teaching resources.
International Inspiration: a London Olympics’ sports legacy program, which reportedly, has an impact on 25 million children around the world at the end of 2019.
The program has trained over 250,000 teachers, coaches, and other leaders to strengthen sporting systems in their countries for future generations. Thanks to long-term funding, the legacy program currently supports ongoing programs in Bangladesh, India, Ethiopia, and elsewhere.
Transforma in Rio: launched at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, it is an education program that aimed to use sport as an educational tool and, at the same time, increase the number of sports offered in schools across Brazil.
Brazilian schools are notable for teaching just four sports football, basketball, handball, and volleyball.
Notably, since 2013, more than 28,000 Brazilian schools in 4,400 cities have been part of the program, which continues to this day through a private foundation.
PyeongChang’s Dream Programme: which started way back in 2004, 14 years before the city hosted the 2018 Olympic Games. The program is aimed at finding kids with little exposure to snow and involves them in both winter sports and Korean culture.
So far, the initiative has had an impact on about 2,028 young people from 84 different countries.
Notably, 200 participants have gone on to compete internationally, including at the Olympic Winter Games.
PyeongChang 2018 also helped change the way sport was discussed in the classroom, helping the Olympic message to reach over 7.5 million students across Korea. Empowering girls and teaching the importance of inclusion and gender balance is one of its major hallmarks.
UN declares International Day of Education
The United Nations General Assembly has declared 24 January as International Day of Education, in celebration of the role of education for peace and development.
According to the world body, current data shows that 258 million children and youth still do not attend school.
It further stated that 617 million children and adolescents could not read and do basic math. Less than 40 percent of girls in sub-Saharan Africa complete lower secondary school, and some four million children and youth refugees are out of school.
Acknowledging the vital work carried out by Pierre de Coubertin, the UN General Assembly stated every child has the right to education. When this is being violated, it is unacceptable.
UN, through the UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund), promises to put a structure in place that will be inclusive and provide equitable quality education and lifelong opportunities for all.
Also, stressing to assist all countries in achieving gender equality, UN agencies, in collaboration with the host countries, break the cycle of poverty that is leaving millions of children, youth, and adults behind.
