Sport at the heart of everyday life
Things are happening in September – or rather, September is on the move! That is, in fact, the name of the Ministry of Sport’s campaign to encourage everyone to put physical activity and sport back at the heart of their daily lives. Across the region, sporting events are taking their place on the calendar every week.
To build on the momentum of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the first edition of Physical Activity and Sport Month, entitled ‘Septembre Bouge’, is taking place this September. Organised to coincide with the start of the new sporting season – a key time for taking up or resuming physical and sporting activity – this initiative aims to promote sport as a driver of health and wellbeing and to make physical and sporting activity a daily habit for everyone. From mainland France to the overseas territories, the ‘Septembre Bouge’ tour, with its sports villages, will travel across the territories until the end of the month, visiting 18 stop-off towns, including Basse-Terre in Guadeloupe. In Saint Martin, the event is taking a different form.
Following the Collectivité’s sports festival, and ahead of the Sporty Challenge organised by the Centre for Excellence and Education through Sport later this month, it’s time for the Beach Games, organised by the Territorial Olympic Committee of Saint Barthélemy and Saint Martin (CTOS sbsm).
Beach Games: the CTOS’s flagship event
The ‘National Sports Day’, in the spirit of ‘September on the Move’, will mark the midpoint of this month dedicated to sport. The first event of its kind, called for by the President of the Republic in the wake of the Olympic Games, was launched in 2025 with the aim of becoming an annual event on 14 September. To ensure as many people as possible can take part – as 14 September falls on a Monday this year – the Territorial Olympic Committee of Saint-Barthélemy and Saint-Martin (CTOS sbsm) will organise its Beach Games on Sunday 13 September from 3 pm to 5 pm on Waï Beach in Baie Orientale.
For this second edition, four sports will be featured: beach tennis with the KKO Beach Club, beach volleyball with the Elloz association, beach rugby with the Archiball, and longe-côte with the Friendly Longe-Côte club. Whether on the beach or in the water, the public – young people and adults alike – will be able to watch demonstrations or take part free of charge in taster sessions offered by each of the clubs. The aim of the day is not to take part in a match but rather to discover and have a go at each of the sports whilst having fun… and to realise that physical activity is important for health, whatever your age or ability.
