Objects,Space,Memory and Cultural Identity:A Review of Research on Sports Museums at Home and Abroad and Suggestions

Based on the perspective of cultural identity, foreign sports museums are analyzed from three aspects: objects, space and memory. It is found that foreign sports museums have the following characteristics: 1) stress the symbolic metaphor and representative meaning behind sports souvenirs, sportswear, sports equipment and other sports objects to shape cultural identity; 2)emphasize the construction of cultural identity in the museum space such as sports venues, sports monuments, sports halls of fame,etc. 3) value the narrative structure of individual memory and collective memory in the sports museums to develop cultural identity.In contrast, most studies on sports museums in China are conducted from the perspective of development, i. e. history, while few studies are carried out from the deeper cultural interpretation of objects, space and memory. Thus, it is proposed that based on learning from the research experience of foreign sports museums, we should not only deepen the research on objects, space and memory of sports museums, especially pay attention to the status and role of sports museums in constructing cultural identity, but also attempt to apply sociology and anthropology and other interdisciplinary theories in the study of sports museums.