Long before the lights go on in Los Angeles to host the Olympics, the U.S. is hoping it’ll have another big international event under its belt. The World University Championships, put on by the International University Sports Federation (FISU), is looking for hosts for its 2022 and 2024 events and the U.S. has thrown its hat into the ring.
FISU, for those who haven’t met it yet, is the international governing body for competitions of student-athletes between the ages of 17 and 28. (This is different from the IOC and from NCAA – although NCAA athletes do compete in it.)
The best news? The U.S. already has a strong case as it’s set to host a separate FISU event, the Winter Universiade (often referred to in English as the World University Games), in 2023 in Lake Placid. Universiade is reported to be the largest multi-sport event in the world, with the exception of the Olympics, and the winter version includes eight sports: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross country skiing, curling, figure skating, freestyle skiing, ice hockey, short track speed skating and snowboard. (A summer version, with different sports, is also held; information is here.)
Lake Placid is one of the cities competing for hosting duties of the World University Championships. And it’s not alone: More than 40 bids, from 25 countries have been received. Seems like everyone is hoping to host the 25 events that will take place in 2022 and 2024:
World University Championships (21) – including competition among national teams
- Beach Volleyball
- Canoe Sports
- Combat Sports
- Cross Country
- Cycling
- Futsal
- Golf
- Mind Sports
- Modern Pentathlon
- Orienteering
- Powerlifting
- Rowing
- Sailing
- Shooting Sport
- Ski Orienteering
- Speed Skating
- Sport Climbing
- Squash
- Triathlon
- Waterski & Wakeboard
- Weightlifting
University World Cups (4) – where university teams compete
- American Football
- Floorball
- Handball
- Cheerleading
Bids also came from cities in Asia, Africa and Europe, as well as from South America (Argentina, Brazil and Costa Rica are all bidding). A full list of countries and cities bidding can be found here.
A bid evaluation is in progress, and recommendations are expected to be submitted to the FISU Executive Committee in early December 2019.
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