Sports Events: Enjoy the Moment, Protect What Makes Them Special

New Sports for Nature guide helps event organisers put nature at the heart of every competition

Sports for Nature has launched a new practical guide to help sports event organisers protect and enhance nature, unveiled during the third Nature Sportified webinar, “Sports Events: Enjoy the Moment, Protect What Makes It Special”, on 10 December 2025.

The resource is aimed at people who plan and deliver sports events – from local races to international championships – most of whom are not ecologists but increasingly want to “do the right thing” for nature.

A clear, four-step roadmap

Lead author David Stubbs introduced the guide as a concise tool, written in the language of event managers and structured around a Four-Step Event Lifecycle:

Understanding the venue – early environmental due diligence, mapping sensitive habitats and species, identifying legal obligations, and engaging local experts and stakeholders.

Planning the event – integrating nature into venue and course layout, assigning clear responsibilities, setting up a “green” lead, and sourcing goods and services with nature in mind.

Staging the event – installing temporary infrastructure where it does least harm, monitoring compliance during competition, and communicating nature protection efforts to athletes, spectators and staff.

Assessing what you leave behind – following a “Leave No Trace” philosophy and, where needed, restoring or enhancing nature with local partners.

Stubbs stressed that while events are short-lived, their influence can be long-term: events create a focal point, bring stakeholders together and can kick-start restoration – but lasting progress depends on venue owners, federations and communities keeping the momentum going.

He also emphasised that smart planning can benefit both nature and finances. Understanding the venue and risks early helps avoid costly problems, and nature-conscious events are increasingly attractive to commercial partners, reducing risk and potentially increasing revenue.

From local beaches to global circuits: signatories in action

After the presentation, three Sports for Nature signatories – the Barbados Olympic Association, the Hungarian Swimming Federation and World Triathlon – shared how they are applying these principles in very different event contexts.

Barbados Olympic Association: mapping nature before the Games

Since joining the Sports for Nature framework in 2024, the Barbados Olympic Association has made understanding the natural context of its beach venues a priority.

Through biodiversity mapping, it identified turtle nesting beaches and chose not to use them for future editions of its Barbados Independence Invitational Games, instead selecting alternative sites and working with national environmental agencies to avoid disturbing sensitive coastal habitats.

Partnerships are central to this approach. Beach clean-ups linked to international days have already shown how collaboration with federations and environmental bodies can spark behaviour change even without a mega-event.

Hungarian Swimming Federation: connecting indoor sport with nature

The Hungarian Swimming Federation showed that indoor events can still support nature and resource efficiency.

At a major international competition in Budapest in 2024, organisers faced thousands of half-finished plastic water bottles. They turned waste reduction into a simple game: next to water stations, basketball-style nets were installed over collection bins, encouraging athletes to “drink it, squeeze it, throw it”. Volunteers promoted the system, leading to fewer abandoned bottles, better recycling and a memorable experience that encouraged more sustainable habits.

Working with their water partner, the Federation expanded the initiative to national events and linked bottle returns to Hungary’s deposit scheme, donating proceeds to local charities.

World Triathlon: flexible courses, local knowledge

For World Triathlon, whose events always rely on outdoor venues and open water, nature is tightly integrated into course design and venue selection.

Annual impact assessments often require route adjustments – for example, to avoid disturbing nesting birds, sensitive vegetation or aquatic species. In some cases, race courses have been significantly rerouted to respect new ecological constraints, recognising that nature is not static from year to year.

World Triathlon’s message to organisers is clear: don’t reinvent solutions alone. Partnering with local environmental organisations brings critical ecological knowledge, helps tailor mitigation measures and keeps costs manageable. Events are encouraged to support existing local nature initiatives and work with local food providers, reducing transport impacts and boosting the host community.

Events as catalysts – but long-term commitment is key

A recurring message throughout the webinar was the balance between the short life of an event and the long life of nature. Sports events can and should be catalysts for nature restoration and protection – drawing attention, bringing partners together and generating momentum – but real ecological gains require continuity:

• One-off tree planting with no follow-up care is not a success.
• Restoration projects must be designed and resourced for the long term.
• Nature-positive legacies depend on enduring partnerships between venue owners, federations, local authorities, conservation groups and communities.

Access the guide and webinar recording

The publication “Managing Sports Events for Nature” is now available on the Sports for Nature website, alongside other resources and regularly updated case studies from across the movement.

The full webinar recording – including the Q&A with David Stubbs and representatives from Barbados Olympic Association, Hungarian Swimming Federation and World Triathlon – is available below.

Enjoy the moment. Protect what makes it special.