Just after the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, we set up Sporting Heritage as a vehicle to ensure that all sporting collections – where-ever they were held and whoever they were held by – were protected and supported for the future. We noticed that the formal heritage sector wasn’t switched on to sport, most of the collections were (and still are) held in private hands – by individuals, in sports clubs, and in governing bodies - with people who have amazing subject knowledge, but aren’t always sure how to protect and share their heritage. As a result, loads of these collections – the amazing stories, objects, archives, and history – were at risk of being lost.
Celebrating sporting heritage
We quickly worked out that we needed something to drive the imagination and get people thinking about sporting heritage - and National Sporting Heritage Day was born! This exciting annual day encourages participation in sporting heritage activities across the country (online and in-person) and celebrates the impact sporting heritage has on all our lives. Since its inception, over one million individuals have been involved, through projects such as touring exhibitions spotlighting local sporting heroes, schools’ programmes developing activity linked to the national curriculum, town centre displays showing the link between sports participation and sporting heritage, and handling sessions in national museums.
Three sporting heritage collections
Here are just three examples of the amazing collections around the country.
The University – women’s sport
The Women in Rugby League Heritage project has been working to ensure that the story of women in rugby league is recognised, understood and celebrated. The collections are held in a variety of venues, with many safely deposited at the University of Huddersfield Archive. Led by Julia Lee, the first female referee, the collection has been groundbreaking and single handedly protected this heritage for the future. It holds Julia’s own archive, which is one of the most important sporting heritage collections related to the story of women’s sport in the UK and internationally.
The Gallery – sporting art
The National Galleries of Scotland, based in Edinburgh, hold a significant collection of sporting art. The collections include a stunning portrait of Eve Muirhead (former Skip of the British Curling team), a poignant portrait of Doddy Weir, Scottish Rugby Union player and MND campaigner, and the world-renowned MacKinnon Collection telling the story of Scottish sport between 1840 and 1940.
The Museum – disability sport
The National Paralympic Heritage Trust celebrates and shares collections which tell the story of the Paralympic movement. Based at Stoke Mandeville, the home of the Paralympic Games, the collections are arguably the most significant disability heritage collection in the world. They include the famous cloak worn by Sir Ian McKellen at the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Paralympic Games, the Caz Walton collection which tells Caz’s story as a British Wheelchair athlete and former British Paralympic Team Manager, and an extensive archive of oral histories which share in-depth person stories related to the Games.
More from Sporting Heritage
The heritage we share is diverse and has often been excluded from the formal heritage record. National Sporting Heritage Day (NSHD), and the work we deliver at Sporting Heritage, aims to change that and place sport at the centre of the heritage field, protecting and celebrating these amazing sporting collections for future generations.
Funded by the amazing people working with collections and wider funding bodies - including the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the players of the National Lottery, we run a wide range of activities and events in addition to NSHD such as:
- Annual Sporting Heritage Awards to recognise the achievements of those working with these collections.
- A themed month each year to focus on specific sector needs and collections areas.
- Workforce development programme and network events underpin it all, to deliver training and guidance.
Find out more
- Sporting Heritage You Tube channel – loads of content from how to start a sporting heritage journey and look after a collection, to how to expand audiences and develop digital engagement.
- Sporting Heritage Sound Cloud channel – podcasts and personal stories and journeys of sporting heritage.
- Sporting Heritage website – all the information you could need on developing a sporting heritage collection, accessing our grants programme, taking part in our events, and our groundbreaking Sporting Heritage Toolkit!
- Sporting Heritage newsletter – regularly distributes up to date news, advice and information.
