Federation Internationale du Sport Universitaire
FISU stands for Federation Internationale du Sport Universitaire (International University Sports Federation) and was founded in 1949.
FISU’s main responsability is the supervision of both Summer and Winter Universiades as well as the World University Championships.
FISU is composed of a General Assembly which represents the members (141 National University Sports Federations). It is FISU’s main governing body. It elects the Executive Committee for a period of four years, which takes all the necessary decisions for the smooth running of FISU. Ten permanent commissions advise the Executive Committee in their specialised areas and so to simplify its duties. FISU is funded through subscription, organising and entry fees, television incomes, and marketing activities.
The Universiades
The Universiade is an international sporting and cultural festival which is staged every two years in a different city and which is second in importance only to the Olympic Games.
The Summer Universiade consists of 12 compulsory sports (Athletics – Basketball – Fencing – Football – Gymnastics – Judo – Swimming – Diving – Water Polo – Table Tennis – Tennis – Volleyball) and up to three optional sports chosen by the host country. The record figures are 7,805 participants in Izmir, Turkey in 2005 and 174 countries in Daegu, Korea in 2003.
The Winter Universiade consists of 7 compulsory sports (Alpine skiing – Nordic skiing composed of jump, cross country & combined – Curling – Ice Hockey – Short-Track – Speed Skating – Figure Skating – Biathlon) and one or two optional sports also chosen by the host country, and gathered a record of 2,511 participants in Torino, Italy in 2007 and a record number of 50 countries in Innsbruck, Austria in 2005.