Geojournal of Tourism and Geosites | 2026
Authors: Zayed W.; Hassen Z.; Fridhi A.; Bali N.
DOI: 10.30892/gtg.65241-1746
Journal: Geojournal of Tourism and Geosites
Year: 2026
Publisher: Editura Universitatii din Oradea
Document Type: Article
Open Access: All Open Access; Gold Open Access
Cited by: 0
In contemporary societies, sport education, cultural studies, and tourism are increasingly interconnected, shaping identity, heritage, and social development in meaningful ways. Sport education extends beyond physical activity by fostering discipline, teamwork, resilience, leadership, and intercultural awareness. Cultural studies provide valuable perspectives for understanding sport as a social and cultural practice through which identities, values, and collective memories are expressed and negotiated. Tourism further enriches these interactions by promoting cultural exchange, heritage preservation, and community participation. This study examines the relationships among sport education, cultural studies, and tourism and explores their contribution to sustainable social development. An interdisciplinary approach was adopted, combining a systematic literature review, comparative case-study analysis, surveys, interviews, and document analysis. The findings indicate that sport education strengthens social and intercultural competencies while supporting personal development and civic engagement. Cultural studies highlight the role of sport in identity formation and heritage representation, whereas sport tourism encourages community cohesion, intercultural dialogue, and local development. The results also demonstrate that both formal and informal sport activities contribute to cultural awareness and social inclusion. Although challenges related to infrastructure, accessibility, and commercialization remain, integrated sport, culture, and tourism initiatives generate significant educational, social, cultural, and economic benefits. The study concludes that stronger collaboration among educational institutions, cultural actors, local communities, and tourism stakeholders can enhance heritage preservation, social cohesion, and sustainable regional development. © 2026 by the authors.
cultural studies; education sportive; heritage; identity; social development; tourism