For this 5th edition, the awards ceremony of the Nice Côte d’Azur Sport Film Festival was held this Thursday at the MAMAC Auditorium. The ceremony was attended by Deputy Cédric Roussel, and well-known athletes such as the French discus thrower, Dean-Nick Allen.
Applause echoes in the auditorium. The festival is organized under the authority of the International Federation of Sport Cinema (FICTS), an associated member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), chaired by Professor Franco Ascani, member of the IOC Culture and Heritage Commission, in partnership with the Alpes-Maritimes Departmental Olympic and Sports Committee, chaired by Philippe Manassero.
A Ceremony of Awards without the Awardees
This 5th Nice Côte d’Azur International Sport Film Festival is part of the World Challenge, which includes 20 festivals taking place around the world throughout the year. Unfortunately, for this ceremony, the awarded participants were unable to attend the event due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
As a result, a filmed thank-you message from the awardees was sent to the organizers and judges.
An Event Upholding the Values of Sport
“Sport is universality. It educates us, pushes us to excel, and keeps us united. All health precautions were taken, and thanks to technology, the winners were somewhat able to be with us this evening,” explained Deputy Cédric Roussel, who admitted having some regrets about not being able to meet the awardees in person and hopes these additional health precautions won’t last.
Like most major events, the festival was under the threat of potential cancellation. It was originally scheduled to take place last June before being postponed to October 2020. The president of the Alpes-Maritimes Departmental Olympic Committee, Philippe Manassero, expressed his happiness at being able to maintain the edition. “Thanks to this festival, we will show that sport is a vector of sharing, friendship, fraternity, excellence, respect, but also secularism. When one wears a jersey, regardless of colors, religion, the values of the Republic are shared through sport.”
