Tour du Mont-Blanc Erasmus+ Student Trail

The main goal of the project is to promote well-being through physical activity, particularly walking and running. These two sports were chosen because they are accessible to a wide range of people, require little equipment, and can be practiced anywhere.

This event also promotes values such as respect for the environment, solidarity, and tolerance. It aims to strengthen intercultural skills and foster a sense of belonging to Europe by forming multicultural teams that work together to overcome challenges.

Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest peak, which lies within three countries, is the symbolic location chosen for this cooperative project among European students.

Learn more about the project.

The USMB, the project leader, brought together nine of its strategic partners. Four of them are partners in UNITA, the European university of which it is a member.

Partners:

• Portugal: Universidade da Beira Interior, a member of UNITA
• Spain: The University of Zaragoza, a member of UNITA
• Italy: The University of Turin, a member of UNITA
• Romania: West University of Timisoara, a member of UNITA
• Austria: FH Technikum Wien
• Germany: Kiel University of Applied Sciences
• Finland: Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences
• Netherlands: Windesheim University of Applied Sciences
• Ireland: Carlow Institute of Technology

Each of these universities selected five of its students and a faculty advisor to form multicultural teams that hiked around Mont Blanc.

The students were selected following a call for applications, which attracted more than 330 applications for 50 available spots. Applications were to be submitted in video format, accompanied by a letter of recommendation from a faculty advisor and a questionnaire designed to better assess the candidates’ profiles.

Each university selected five candidates, who were then assigned to multicultural and multidisciplinary teams comprising one student from each background.

Due to the health crisis, four partner universities in the project (from Ireland, the Netherlands, Finland, and Germany) were unfortunately unable to send representatives from their countries. At the last minute, these representatives were replaced by students from French, Spanish, and Italian universities who had been placed on the waiting list following the call for applications.

View the photo gallery of the selected students

And to check out the participants’ application videos, follow us on Instagram (#tmb_erasmus) on our IGTV channel.

Two UMSB students, both elite athletes, enthusiastically agreed to serve as ambassadors for the TMBE+ event. Participants were thus accompanied by Oscar Lombardot, the 2021 Junior World Champion in biathlon relay, and by Marie Pollet-Villard, the 2021 French Champion in ski mountaineering (the competitive version of ski touring), in the junior category for vertical race, sprint, and individual events.

Both served as jury members and participated, alongside international students, in the presentation ceremony held on June 12, 2021. There, they shared their experiences with high-level sports and balancing athletics with their university studies. Follow the event’s Instagram account to watch their interviews!

Did you know?
At Savoie Mont Blanc University, elite athletes benefit from a specialized support program designed to help them balance high-level sports with their studies. 250 students are also enrolled in specially tailored “sports-study” programs.

The event began on Saturday, June 5, 2021, in Chamonix, a partner city of the project, and concluded there on Friday, June 11. The trail stages took place between June 6 and 10, consisting of five days of hiking around Mont Blanc.

The challenging route covered a total of 42.5 km, with 3,080 meters of elevation gain and 2,860 meters of elevation loss! Completed over four days, this itinerary treated the students to a wide variety of landscapes around the Beaufortain and Chamonix valleys.

Halfway through the program, they competed in a major orienteering race in Vallorcine, which was won by the red team. At the Mer de Glace, they also had the opportunity to hear a presentation by Philip Deline, a research professor at the EDYTEM laboratory (CNRS / USMB), accompanied by Marco Giardino and Rodolfo Carosi (Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Turin), on global warming in the Alpine regions.

For the first two days of the hike, we trekked with snowshoes and crampons due to the large amounts of snow still present at that altitude (around 2,500 meters) in early June: an experience that was new to some and unforgettable for everyone!

Program and itinerary.

Five multicultural teams, with every nationality represented, set off from Chamonix on June 6, 2021, for a five-day hike. The students had to demonstrate teamwork to complete all the stages of the Erasmus+ Student Trail around Mont Blanc (TMBE) together.

Beyond the athletic challenge, a second challenge—this time a creative one—awaited the participants. During the trail run, they demonstrated their ability to work in an intercultural setting by producing a video. In it, they presented their ideas for better integrating and promoting sports at the university: What role does sports play at the university? How and why should sports and studies be balanced? What skills does sports help develop, and how can these be highlighted?

The videos produced during the event week were evaluated based on several criteria: relevance, structure, visual appeal, creativity of the message and format, and teamwork. The five videos reflect the dedication and creativity of the five teams.

On June 11, during the closing ceremony, one of these videos was a big hit with the jury thanks to the quality of its content and production. The winning “Green Team” won a trip to Brussels this fall to visit the European Commission and present their project and its impacts. The winning video, filmed in the style of a TV news report, explores the topic of sports at university from an interesting angle. The students successfully contrasted the values embodied by sports and the Erasmus+ Tour du Mont-Blanc with common stereotypes about youth.

Watch the Green Team’s video here

“Sports, A Guide to Happiness,” by Killian Quentric, Denis Lovescu, Marta Boetto, Emilie Bernard, Isabel Garcia, Angelika Wlodarczyk, Edgar Beldroega, Conrad Ekisa, and Natsumi Ando.

The 50 participants, selected from 350 video applications, all share a deep passion for the mountains and sports. But they weren’t chosen based solely on athletic criteria.

To prepare them for this challenge, the USMB Sports Department had put together a customized fitness training plan: five activities per week for eight weeks, including online Pilates and circuit training sessions. The activities were led by USMB instructors.

Students were also encouraged to go for runs leading up to the event to improve their cardiovascular fitness.

To minimize the risk of the virus spreading during this challenging public health crisis, the USMB has implemented a health protocol available in French or English.

In addition, a doctor and two nurses accompanied the group on all its trips throughout the week so they could respond to emergencies and take the necessary measures.

Learn more about the teams, their preparations, and interviews with the male and female ambassadors by following the dedicated Instagram account

Following the event, all participants present in Chamonix, as well as those who were unable to attend, were surveyed via a satisfaction and impact assessment questionnaire. Based on their responses, an analysis of results and impacts was conducted, revealing a record satisfaction rate: the average score given to the event by its participants was 9.55 out of 10!

The study also shows that this event helped achieve several objectives:

• strengthening inter-university cooperation among partner institutions
• the creation of a community of European students through sports
• the development of European citizenship
• increased participation in sports as a means of promoting good health
• promoting the Savoie Mont-Blanc region
• environmental conservation

For a more detailed look at all the project’s results and impacts, read the detailed report HERE.

A closing ceremony in Chamonix

The closing ceremony, held at the Chamonix Convention Center, marked the completion of this groundbreaking project. The ceremony began with opening remarks by Juliette Martinez, the Chamonix city councilor responsible for culture and community events, and continued with a speech by USMB President Philippe Galez.

“Beyond this event […] we are building together […] the future European area of education and training. We are infusing it with our shared values and our confidence in the future. USMB is proud to contribute to this, and will always be ready to take it further,” explained Philippe Galez, President of the University of Savoie Mont Blanc.

Before the videos were shown, the topic of sports in college was discussed during a panel discussion. The event’s two ambassadors, Oscar Lombardot (2021 Junior World Champion in biathlon relay) and Marie Pollet-Villard (2021 French Champion in ski mountaineering in the junior category for vertical race, sprint, and individual events), shared their experiences as high-level student-athletes at USMB.

The two ambassadors then joined the other 12 members of the jury to watch the videos and select the best one.

What role does sports play at the university? How and why can students balance sports and academics? What skills does sports help students develop, and how can these skills be leveraged? Beyond simply reflecting on their experiences around Mont Blanc, the teams engaged in an in-depth discussion about sports at the university.

The videos produced during the event week were evaluated based on several criteria: relevance, structure, visual appeal, creativity of the message and format, and teamwork. The five videos reflect the dedication and creativity of the five teams.

On June 11, during the closing ceremony, one of these videos was a big hit with the jury thanks to the quality of its content and production. The winning “Green Team” earned a trip to Brussels to visit the European Commission this fall. The winning video, filmed in the style of a TV news report, explores the topic of sports at university from an interesting angle. The students successfully contrasted the values embodied by sports and the Erasmus+ Tour du Mont-Blanc with common stereotypes about youth.