Tourism, culture and sport

Tourism is the number one industry in the world. It comprised nearly 700 million international travellers worldwide in the year 2000, and represented a total expenditure of more than US$
476 billion. Domestic travel represents a movement of people several times greater.

In essence, ‘people of a community’ partake, meet and participate in day-to-day living and lifestyles in terms of mutual interrelationships, sustenance and trust. This community symbiosis is reflected, in great part, in activity provision of political leadership, religion, education, health, social service, protection, work economy, ...and sports through artifacts.

Sport and tourism have common ground, they both strive to understand other cultures and ways of life, to be instrumental in the promotion and consolidation of peace, and to generate a closer relationship between peoples. This is done in several ways. Sport, through a competitive environment, where performance is the key but where friendship among competitors
is the common rule; and tourism, through the selling of experiences and sensations, where meeting people and sharing experiences is the key.

Worldwide community populations range from a few families to thousands of people. Their external boundaries, vague or precise, formal or informal, affect their levels of community interpersonal and intergroup relationships directly or indirectly. Tourism and culture covers many aspects of travel and travel motives. People learn about each other, their lifestyles and thoughts. In this sense, tourism is an important, and vital, ‘way and means’ of promulgating and promoting cultural knowledge and relationships.

In addition, cultural elements, of any society, are sound, and perhaps expediate resources to attract visitors. In many geographical areas of the world, culture and tourism are linked with distinctive governmental policies thus enhancing the promotion of knowledge, understanding and respective societal image. For this, countries market cultural factors such as: entertainment; food; drink; hospitality; architecture; craft products; performing arts; and other
aspects of their particular or peculiar way of life. Successful tourism and culture is based on presenting a societal national flavour in projecting favourable and positive images as well as benefits, offerings and enjoyment.

Both tourism and sport are complex activities, with a long value-added chain and many actors playing a role, moving billions of dollars each year. Integration and consolidation of many of the activities in each sector is taking place, and the mutual knowledge and deepening of interests and relations between the two sectors could bring further developments and partnerships
in the future.

Sport and tourism are the basis of the well-being of individuals, and culture is no doubt linked to them. Additional collaboration between the two sectors would bring new tourist products, new
possibilities to practise sports, and even new sports. Informal and leisure sports practice is expected to grow in the future, as is tourism travel, both nationally or internationally. In this scenario, new and imaginative ways of dealing with this demand will emerge in the coming years. Local communities must be involved and participate in those developments and, in all cases, well-prepared professionals in both fields will be needed in the future.

In this new millennium, where there is a dire need to encourage cultural diversity, improve relationships and peace, the following play an active role, a dominant role, particularly where sport is the underlying element or facet: libraries; museums; exhibitions; halls of fame; walls of fame; films; television; radio; musical performance; study tours; dramatics; dance; conferences; seminars, etc. Thus diversity of activity destinations provide opportunities and motivational aspiration for people of different countries and continents to travel to get to know one another, each other. Purposeful activities or destinations particularly those that cater to tourist interest and curiosity, are becoming readily acceptable and recognizable.

The scope and type of educational pursuits and endeavours related to sports can be prearranged or organized, or left to the traveller’s discretion. Examples of such touristic achievements are multiple, sports museums offer cultural exhibits relating to sports in paintings, sculpture, graphics, arts and facilities depicting sports as well as athletic achievements of past and present. Moreover memorabilia, souvenirs, and the like featuring displays attract travellers. Other forms of craftwork, music, dance, etc. may supplement such attraction features giving opportunities of enjoyment and entertainment leading to a better comprehension of respective societies. Above all, the philosophy of the Olympic Movement ideals touches upon: cultural heritage, international understanding, sport as education.

Travel study programmes related to sports can be particularly informative and valuable experiences. And the cultural heritage aspects is often expressed in historical resources. The preservation of sports history is found in museums, be it in specialized exhibits, special events or festivals or thematic expositions. Halls/Walls of Fame, also tell the history of sport significance focusing attention on sport peculiarities. Valued information on historical perspectives of sport are found worldwide Moscow, Lausanne, Rome, Mexico City, London, Paris, etc. The interrelationships of diverse and different cultural backgrounds, approaches, presentations, exhibitions, stimulates travelers to focus and better understand the lifestyles of people of the world.