The annual International Day of University Sport (IDUS) is back on 20th September 2021. Officially proclaimed by UNESCO, IDUS has been gaining in strength and popularity over the years with students, universities, sports federations and clubs organising their own events all around the globe.
FISU expects this trend to continue for IDUS 2021, and given the current pandemic situation we are, the main challenge will be in the way each organiser finds a creative way to promote university sport within the limits imposed by each country.
#LetsIDUS will be back in action on social media where NUSFs, CUSFs and University communities can use this hashtag to promote the day with other members, partners and of course university communities. This can be a starting point to get your message, event and ideas out there and gain support for your project.
To help you put together your own International Day of University Sport celebration plan, we will be providing you with a starter kit along with some graphics that you can find on the FISU website.
In addition, we will soon release an IDUS guideline to help you find inspiration and plan your event, so stay tuned for this release, it will also be on our website!
Organised every year since 2016, IDUS aims to create a link between universities and local communities through sport, physical activity and healthy living. In previous years, university communities in Norway, Australia and Switzerland held Oslo in Motion, Monash in Motion and Lausanne in motion respectively, held community wide events promoting university sport with free activities for the public. These activities included dance classes, fitness classes, rock climbing, stand up paddle boarding and much more from many other FISU members as well!
Last year, despite the pandemic situation, the fifth consecutive International Day of University Sport was celebrated around the world in accordance with health and safety rules. Plans for this year are being made keeping the same framework in mind.
In 2020, 135 member federations marked the day with various activities, many of them virtual. In Africa, for example, from Somalia to Kenya and right up to the tip of South Africa, celebrations were held with various exercise and sport related videos and dance activities. The event reached out to 3 million people from universities, cities, clubs, federations and communities, with Argentina, Brazil and Russia topping the list of the most active countries who celebrated IDUS last year.
The goal for this year is to get even more involvement from FISU members, with the hopes of increasing awareness to the University Sport Movement as a whole. Make sure to share photos of your events on social media and mention @FISU so we can see what’s going on in your area.
