At the Henri Bernard Boulodrome in Nice, the CDOS 06 presented yesterday the 2025 report of its “Education and Citizenship” section, with a focus on the Sports Caravan. Despite a drop in attendance and a tight budgetary context, the stakeholders continue their mission to travel throughout the department.
This year again, the Sports Caravan traveled the roads of the Alpes-Maritimes to introduce children to sports and instill the values of Olympism. In front of the assembled associations and institutional representatives in Nice, Manuel Dureuil, president of the Departmental Olympic and Sports Committee (CDOS 06) for six months, opened the conference by recalling the very essence of the project: “The objective remains to reach as many young people from the region as possible, and not tourists.”
A message that sums up the philosophy of a community-focused association, committed to its territory.
A 2025 edition marked by constraints and heat
Of the 5,843 participants recorded this year compared to 7,038 in 2024, the decrease can be explained by several factors, including the weather. “Out of the 26 announced destinations, we completed only 24 due to heatwave alerts“, explained Frédéric Lafleur, vice-president of the Sports Caravan. “The Nice academies refused to let children go out in such temperatures.“
The spring tour gathered 2,677 children, while the summer tour hosted 3,166, covering a total of 1,608 kilometers throughout the department.
95% of the participants reside in the Alpes-Maritimes, a number stable compared to previous years.
The 4-8 age group represents 62% of the children welcomed, with a proportion of 62% boys and 38% girls, a figure that reflects the average in the world of sports in France.
Going everywhere, even to the smallest municipalities
Despite the declining numbers, the CDOS asserts its local grounding. “If we wanted to reach 10,000, we would go to Nice, Cannes, or Cagnes-sur-Mer and we could achieve those figures“, said Manuel Dureuil. “But that doesn’t interest us. What matters is bringing sports and the values of citizenship even to the smallest towns in the hinterlands.”
This commitment is all the more remarkable given the difficult economic context. “It is increasingly challenging for us to fulfill our missions with ever tighter budgets“, acknowledged the CDOS president. “If in the past, the State and the Department funded in equal parts, this is no longer the case today. The main support, is the Departmental Council.“
The total cost of the Caravan is estimated between 56,000 to 58,000 euros, or about 2,000 to 2,500 euros per stage.
Educational and citizenship actions at the heart of the scheme
Beyond sports, the Caravan also aims to be a space for citizenship education and prevention. The young participants were made aware of waste sorting with the CARF, life-saving techniques thanks to the SDIS 06 firefighters, and addiction prevention with the gendarmerie. “We need to involve our youth in waste sorting because it is important for us but especially for them“, insisted Frédéric Lafleur.
These initiatives show the CDOS’s desire to make the Caravan a tool of public education, where sports become a means of prevention and social connection.
Between budgetary concerns and hopes for stability
Aware of the financial pressures to come, Manuel Dureuil expresses his concerns: “2025 was a financially challenging year, believe me, 2026 will be worse. Clubs, committees, everyone will be affected.”
Nonetheless, the association is not giving up. It is already preparing a new autumn version of the Caravan, with four stages planned for next year. “These stages will help ease the summer period and better distribute our presence throughout the year“, explains the CDOS president.
Present at the conference, Carine Papy, vice-president of the Alpes-Maritimes Departmental Council, was able to reassure local sports stakeholders: “The Department has chosen to maintain its 17 million euro budget allocated to sports, without reduction. Subsidies to the CDOS remain the same. Charles-Ange Ginésy, our president, is very committed to associations that enliven the region and create social connections.“
A message of stability offering a reassuring margin of maneuver in a period where associations fear for their future.
