The Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum will open the 'Shine Bright Like The Ice' exhibition on February 5, dedicated to ice sports.

The exhibition highlights the achievements of Estonian athletes who have represented the country in the 21st century, showcasing their medals and success-related items from international competitions at both youth and senior levels. Visitors can explore a diverse display covering official Winter Olympic ice sports such as speed skating, figure skating, curling, and ice hockey.

At the Sports Museum, visitors will find items such as the silver medal won by the curling pair Marie Kaldvee and Harri Lill at the 2024 World Championships, as well as their Golden Kristjan award for being named Estonia’s Team of the Year. Also on display are items related to speed skaters Saskia Alusalu and Marten Liiv, including Liiv’s European Championship medals and his racing suit from the Beijing Winter Olympics. Additionally, visitors can see the racing suit of Chinese skater Ning Zhongyan, which he exchanged with Liiv after the Inzell Sprint World Championships.

Urmet Paloveer, the museum’s development specialist and curator of the exhibition, notes that visitors will also have the opportunity to see items belonging to the newly crowned European Champion, Niina Petrõkina. “It’s a great joy to witness how our exhibition’s title, which expresses the hope for continued success of our ice athletes, was so brilliantly fulfilled just this past weekend when Niina Petrõkina brought home Estonia’s historic European Championship gold medal. Unfortunately, this latest triumph is not yet included in the exhibition, but other items from Europe’s newest champion are available for viewing,” says Paloveer.

In addition to Petrõkina, figure skater Arlet Levandi has contributed unique items reflecting his sporting achievements. Ice hockey fans can explore the career highlights of Estonian hockey player Robert Rooba, including his 2018 Champions Hockey League gold medal and the captain’s jersey from the Finnish club JYP Jyväskylä, where he served as captain during the 2022–2023 season.

The exhibition is open at the Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum in Tartu at Rüütli 15 from Wednesday to Sunday, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, and will remain open until early May. Entry is available with a museum ticket or museum pass.

The Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum is the largest sports museum in the Baltic region, located on Tartu’s main street. It is one of the most modern sports museums in Europe, offering interactive experiences where visitors can try out different sports and explore Estonia’s sporting history. Additionally, the Sports Museum has been nominated for the 2024 European Museum of the Year Award.