The impact of hosting international elite sport events

The city of Rotterdam has a rich history of organising sport events. Since 2010, the explicit goal is to increase recreational sport participation, and additional policies were implemented aiming towards more engagement of citizens. Three of the ten events were followed by an increase in sport participation 1 year after the event was organised, whereas one event was followed by a decrease. Only the increase in recreational cycling following the Tour de France Grand Depart in 2010 sustained up to 5-years after the event. We found some evidence that a city with a clear ambition to target sport participation via the hosting of elite sport events may influence sport participation among the general population. A careful selection of the type sport activity promoted through hosting elite sport event seems important, given that not all events were followed by an increase in sport participation. Further research is needed to identify the type of activities needed to reach the population, and to identify the elements of these activities that contribute to increasing sport participation.

Research output in an animated GIF: The evaluation of Rotterdam sport event policies, summarised in 3 minutes
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