FISU changes age limit of participants

The International University Sports Federation has changed the age limit of athletes that will participate in all events they organize like the University Games—Summer and Winter—and the World University Championships.

FISU president Oleg Matytsin of Russia sent the letter addressed to all National University Sports Federations and Continental University Sports Federations last month informing them of the change. FISU secretary general and chief executive officer Eric Saintrond also signed the letter.

The former age bracket is from 17 to 28 years old, but the governing body of University sports lowered the limit to 25.

The FISU Executive Committee decided to reduce the age limit during its last meeting held on March 4 and 5 in Brussels, Belgium. Basketball remains the same at 25 and under.

“This change was initiated after a careful study of statistics of participation for the last three Winter and Summer Universiade, and WUC from 2012 to 2014,” wrote Matytsin in the letter.

Matytsin said the new age limit would give FISU more chance to focus on their target group— students-athletes that are in the 19 to 25 years old range. Records show that 85 percent of the participants in FISU events the last three years are within that bracket.

The old age bracket will still be followed in all FISU events this year and up to next year.

“These new age rules will be applied starting from [WUC] 2018, and Winter and Summer Universiade 2019,” Matytsin added.

The WUC is part of the FISU program where 28 sports are played either in every two or four-year intervals. There are 28 sports with 42 events under the FISU program.

Archery, badminton, baseball, beach volleyball, bridge, chess, cross country, cycling, equestrian, flat water canoeing, floorball, futsal, golf, handball, field hockey, karate, match racing, ski orienteering, rowing, rugby 7s, sailing, sport shooting, softball, squash, taekwondo, triathlon, white water canoeing, waterskiing, weightlifting, woodball, wrestling, 3×3 basketball, American football, boxing, canoe sprint, netball, rowing, speed skating, and sport climbing, are FISU’s WUC events.

FISU is based in Lausanne, Switzerland. Since 2004, they had organized 34 WUC sporting events that attracted thousands of student-athletes from more than 150 countries around the world, including the CNMI.