“Flex, Touch, Play!” The National Sports Museum of Nice crosses the finish line even before the deadline, thus gaining a significant head start on the initial schedule. Consequently, the doors will open to the public at 6 p.m. next Friday, June 27.
At the heart of the Allianz Riviera Stadium, the National Sports Museum is the result of long-term efforts initiated in 1963 by the then Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, Maurice Herzog. It culminated in an exhibition site with cultural and educational activities open to all.
The public will have access to more than 45,000 objects and 400,000 documents (equipment, clothing, trophies, mascots, posters, paintings, films, photos) available, making it one of the largest collections in the world. Among others, there will be draisiennes and legendary cycles, balls and rackets, vintage skis, tracksuits and costumes of the most famous athletes, etc., to tell the story of sports from Antiquity to the present day.
The notion of “challenge,” the cornerstone of sporting achievements, forms the essence and guiding thread of a museographic journey aimed at experiencing – through soundscapes, projections of sports moments films, and interactive challenges – the emotion of effort, victory, defeat… thus living from the inside, the sporting spirit and its values!
Each challenge will be illustrated by unique objects and documents chosen from the museum’s vast collection: the ball from the 1998 World Cup final, Marcel Cerdan’s gloves, Marie José-Perec’s spikes, Jean-Claude Killy’s skis, Yannick Noah’s racket… along with countless and improbable mascots, not to mention paintings by Maurice Denis or sculptures by Gustave Doré…
Thanks to its exceptional collection and the input of top specialists, the National Sports Museum reveals sports from a cultural and scientific perspective, highlighting its social, economic, technical, and artistic stakes.
