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The European Union honors Run4Unity for its commitment to building peace through sports
Run4Unity has received the prestigious BeActive EU Sport Awards from the European Union in the “sports and peace” category, recognising more than twenty years of work promoting fraternity, inclusion and a culture of peace through sports.
It is a very important award that Run4Unity (R4U) received in Brussels on the 23rd of June. It is the prestigious international “BeActive EU Sport Awards”, awarded in the “sports and peace” category to this race that embraces the whole world every year in the name of unity and fraternity.
The #BeActive EU Sport Awards are an institutional initiative of the European Union linked to the Erasmus+ programme and the long-standing #BeActive campaigns. These prestigious awards were launched in 2025 as an evolution and expansion of previous EU initiatives dedicated to sports and inclusion. Their aim is to celebrate those who use and promote physical activity as a driving force for well-being, equality, social inclusion, volunteering, health, encounter and peace throughout Europe. The #BeActive EU Sport Awards seek to give due recognition to individuals, organizations and groups capable of building, through their ideas, actions and sports-related projects, an encouraging and inspiring example.
Agostino Spolti, an educator who for years worked, together with others, on the development of the youth branch of the Focolare Movement, was present at the award ceremony because everything began with an idea of his: Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement, had a clear understanding that sports could be an extraordinary vehicle for conveying messages to the youth. For this reason, she asked her collaborators for ideas and, one day, while looking out over lake of Castel Gandolfo, near Rome, Agostino thought of a race that could symbolically embrace the equator, understood as the entire world. He spoke to Chiara about it, and on 9th of October 2005, the dream became a reality.
21 years of work: “How many people in Europe are committed to building the common good through sports”
What emotions did you experience when receiving this award? we asked Agostino.
“Strong emotions! I couldn’t help but think of the faces and the great experiences lived through these 21 years of R4U. Of the sports practiced by thousands of people across different continents. Of some of the difficulties and the countless joys we experienced. Of the profound emotions that, over time, have left their mark in my life.”
Agostino was accompanied by Elisabetta Debernardi: “a young member of the Focolare Movement who has taken part in the various editions of R4U since she was a girl. Together, we represented New Humanity: the organisation that acts as a spokesperson and ambassador for the values of the Focolare Movement towards international institutions and that presented the project.”
Agostino remembers everything about the ceremony, beginning with “it’s very familiar atmosphere, which allowed participants to get to know one another and share the activities that had been presented. It was one of the most enriching moments of the evening, as was seeing how many activities are taking place and how many people in Europe are committed to building the common good through sports.”
Agostino described it as “a continuous celebration”, recalling the presentation (through video profiles) of the finalists in the five categories: physical activity, inclusion, volunteering, dialogue between generations (across generations), and peace. Then came their turn to take the stage, as they waited for the envelope to reveal the name of the winning project.
“When the name of New Humanity was announced for the Run4Unity initiative, I spontaneously went over to greet the other finalists with a handshake, with whom we had already developed a wonderful relationship.” It was an “informal gesture that was warmly applauded: that same evening, many people came over to congratulate us on the victory and on having discovered Run4Unity with its spontaneity and its spirit not of competition, but of collaboration.” The same word, “collaboration,” was “used in the brief thank-you speech and was greatly appreciated by the audience.”
Agostino recalled the moment when it was Elisabetta Debernardi’s turn to speak: “The youngest person present, a simple but important sign indicating that Europe is young, and that Europe belongs to the youth.” Agostino concluded by saying that he experienced further emotions “during the dinner: another opportunity to get to know one another and share the many diverse and original activities being carried out.”
165 events around the world over the past two years: “A true global relay”
Isabel Noernberg, who follows and coordinates Run4Unity, also expressed her satisfaction with the award given to the initiative. “Over the past two years,” she explained, “R4U has organized 165 events (68 in 2025 and 97 in 2026), creating a truly global relay that crosses time zones, cultures and continents. As many as 57 countries have taken part in this journey, symbolically passing the baton from one community to another and demonstrating how a shared gesture can generate participation and engagement. “Following and coordinating this international network,” Isabel concluded, “represents a great challenge for me, but also an immense privilege”.