31 May 2024 – IOC and the Beijing Olympic City Development Association sign agreement to expand Olympic values-based education across China.

In April, the Olympic Foundation for Culture and Heritage (OFCH) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Beijing Olympic City Development Association (BODA) to promote the Olympic values to young people in China through education and sport. Following this new agreement, BODA and the OFCH, which manages the Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP), co-organised a three-day OVEP Train-the-Trainer workshop in Beijing, China, to support the programme’s implementation.

The workshop, held from 24 to 26 April, welcomed 37 participants from a dozen Chinese cultural and educational institutions. It empowered educators and facilitators with the knowledge and tools to integrate the learnings of the programme – rooted in the Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect – across their respective communities and fields of work.

To promote learning through play, the sessions incorporated experiential learning. They focused on five educational themes: experiencing the joy of effort through sport and physical activity; learning to play fair; practising respect; the pursuit of excellence; and balance of body, will and mind.

Xiaojun Shi, a PE teacher at Dianchanglu Primary School, was already familiar with the Olympic values. His school in Beijing’s Shijingshan district has been promoting them for many years, with Beijing having been Host City to both the Olympic Games and Olympic Winter Games. He welcomed the opportunity for a more interactive way of learning.

“We have been learning about the Olympic values on paper. Through the three days of in-person training, I have gained a better understanding of the significance of the Olympic values. I will now try to put what I have learned here into practice and share all that I have learned with my students so that they can understand the values through me.”

Xiaojun Shi, PE teacher at Dianchanglu Primary School

Huizi Jing, who works on the educational activities of the Beijing Olympic Museum, found the workshop a great source of inspiration. She left with a greater understanding of OVEP and many new ideas. With her sights already set on what comes next, she aspires to go to the next level and eventually become a “master trainer”.

“Learning about the Olympic values will allow us to be more targeted in our work, and OVEP’s framework is really inspiring. A lot of the exercises we have done over the past three days can be implemented in the museum when we have visitors, especially students or community residents. In the future, we want to incorporate the Olympic values into the initiatives we launch at the museum.”

Huizi Jing, Educational activities of the Beijing Olympic Museum

For Shuai Zhen, Project Manager of Public Welfare Projects at the Samaranch Foundation, China represents a growth opportunity for OVEP.

“China is a huge market because of the vast number of young people in the country very eager and motivated to learn about the Olympics and their values, so it is a good platform for the development of OVEP.”

Shuai Zhen, Project Manager of Public Welfare Projects at the Samaranch Foundation

On a more personal level, the training provided him with a new perspective on how to approach the Olympic values and spirit and incorporate them into his daily work.

Olympic values in action inside and outside the classroom

On the back of OVEP’s Train-the-Trainer workshop, the OFCH launched a new partnership with the Zhang Hong Foundation, founded by Chinese IOC Member and speed skating Olympic champion Zhang Hong. This partnership will see the implementation of OVEP-related activations across various schools and organisations, starting in Heilongjiang Province in the north of China.

A pilot implementation is already underway within the Foundation’s existing “Sports Education into 100 Schools” programme. With its network of 100 primary and secondary schools, the pilot is transmitting and promoting the Olympic values and spirit to young people in China. At a later stage, the programme will also be deployed across selected universities in Heilongjiang Province. In cooperation with the IOC, the Foundation has already begun translating the OVEP toolkit. Providing free teaching resources, it is designed to enhance any educational curriculum with Olympic-themed activities, teaching strategies and inspirational materials.

As of May, OVEP has also been rolled out across the Olympic Games’ account on Chinese social media and messaging platform WeChat. In conjunction with the IOC’s “Let’s Move” initiative, the OVEP hub will bring tailor-made Olympic content and fun interactions to Chinese sports enthusiasts from now until the end of 2024.

Followers can partake in training programmes, challenges and quizzes, or watch video tutorials on various sports. The programme also features contributions from renowned Chinese Olympians, including veteran figure skater Jin Boyang, 3×3 basketball bronze medallist Yang Shuyu, and sprinter and 4x100m bronze medallist Xie Zhenye – all in the spirit of inspiring more people to engage in sport and lead more active and healthy lifestyles.

Sport as a platform for values-based learning

Through the Olympic Values Education Programme, participants are encouraged to experience values-based learning and to assume the responsibilities of good citizenship. OVEP communicates the long-term benefits of sport and physical activity through an understanding of Olympism and its impact on individual health, enjoyment and social interaction. The resources and toolkits, available in multiple languages, are designed to make it possible for young people of any skill level to enjoy and learn from physical activity, and are aimed at helping children become active, healthy and responsible citizens.