Student sports have almost the same long history as the Olympic movement. Already in 1905, the first international student competitions were held in the United States. In 1919, the French Confederation of Students was created by the Frenchman Jean Ptizhan, and its creator negotiated with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to hold special student Olympiads.
Own road
The IOC did not go for it. As a result, in 1923, the World Student Games were born in Paris. Several times they changed their name: Student World Championship, International Sports Student Week, World University Games. At first, they were exclusively summer, and over time, winter began to be held. Even in Nazi Germany, an alternative appeared in the form of a sports program for the World Festival of Youth and Students. Incidentally, the Soviet Union supported the idea of the festival, not the championships. In 1953, the Festival was held in Moscow.
After the Second World War (in 1949), the united International Federation of University Sports (FISU) was finally created. Her goal was to organize a single global student competition, and strengthen relations with the IOC and higher educational institutions around the world.
By 1959, it was possible to create the truly first world student Olympics. She was given a name made up of two keywords - university and the Olympics.
In 1960, the first winter Universiade took place in the capital of the first Winter Olympic Games, the French Chamonix.
Since then, 28 winter competitions have been held. They were mainly hosted by small towns in mountainous areas, where there are good conditions for winter sports. Most often these were towns in the Italian Alps, but hosted competitions and capitals.
In general, Soviet and Russian students dominated the Universiade. Indigenous sports from the very beginning were ski jumping, ski biathlon, figure skating, cross-country skiing, skiing. Then added hockey, speed skating and biathlon. In modern times, curling, snowboarding, short track and freestyle were popular among young people.
A short list of winter Universiades can be found below.
Dossier
| No. | Year | A place | Sports | Medal leader | 3 + 2 + 1 * leaders | Heroes (medals). Hockey Champion (Men) |
| I | 1960 | Chamonix (France) | Ski jumping, Nordic combined, Figure skating, Cross-country skiing, Alpine skiing | Austria (8) | France (17 points) | Marie-José Duconsche (France, skiing) - 3 each (2, 1,0). |
| II | 1962 | Vignar-sur-Olonne (Switzerland) | Hockey added | Germany and France (7) | Germany (18) | Barbie Henneberger (Germany, skiing) - 4 (3, 1, 0). Czechoslovakia. |
| III | 1964 | Splinderow Mlyn (Czechoslovakia) | Hockey removed | USSR (8) | USSR (18) | Fritz Wagnerberger (Germany, skiing) - 4 (3, 0, 1). |
| IV | 1966 | Sestriere (Italy) | Hockey added | USSR (12) | USSR (26) | No one took more than two medals. USSR. |
| V | 1968 | Innsbruck (Austria) | Speed skating added | USSR (19) | USSR (35) | Katie Nagel (USA, skiing), Alexander Zhekulyaev (USSR, ice skates) - 3 each (3, 0, 0). USSR. |
| VI | 1970 | Rovaniemi (Finland) | The same | USSR (37) | USSR (79) | Rose Fortna (USA, skiing), Nina Stankevich (USSR, ice skating) - 3 (3, 0, 0). Czechoslovakia. |
| VII | 1972 | Lake Placid (USA) | The same | USSR (29) | USSR (62) | USSR. |
| VIII | 1975 | Livigno (Italy) | Alpine skiing, cross-country skiing | Italy (12) | Italy (31) | Bruno Confortola (Italy, skiing), Yuri Vakhrushev, Valery Isaev (both - the USSR, skiing) - 3 (2, 1, 0). |
| IX | 1978 | Splinderow Mlyn (Czechoslovakia) | The same | USSR (14) | USSR (31) | - |
| X | 1981 | Jaca (Spain) | The same | USSR (18) | USSR (40) | - |
| Xi | 1983 | Sofia (Bulgaria) | Biathlon, ski biathlon, ski jumping, figure skating, hockey added | USSR (24) | USSR (53) | USSR. |
| XII | 1985 | Belluno (Italy) | Short track added | Canada (19) | Canada (36) | Vladimir Nikitin (USSR, skiing) - 3 (3, 0, 0). USSR. |
| XIII | 1987 | Strbske Pleso (Czechoslovakia) | The same | Czechoslovakia (29) | Czechoslovakia (70) | Vladimir Nikitin (USSR, skiing) - 3 (3, 0, 0). Czechoslovakia. |
| XIV | 1989 | Sofia (Bulgaria) | The same | USSR (30) | USSR (60) | USSR. |
| XV | 1991 | Sapporo (Japan) | The same | Japan (30) | Japan (61) | Canada. |
| XVI | 1993 | Zakopane (Poland) | The same | Japan and the USA (30) | Japan (32) | Russia. |
| XVII | 1995 | Jaca (Spain) | The same | South Korea (14) | South Korea (28) | Kazakhstan. |
| XVIII | 1997 | Muju (South Korea) | The same | Japan (25) | Japan (52) | Czech. |
| XIX | 1999 | Poprad (Slovakia) | Snowboard added | Russia (30) | Russia (77) | Ukraine. |
| XX | 2001 | Zakopane (Poland) | The same | Russia (31) | Russia (59) | Slovakia. |
| XXI | 2003 | Tarvisio (Italy) | Curling added | Russia (32) | Russia (66) | Russia. |
| XXII | 2005 | Innsbruck (Austria) | Freestyle added, curling excluded | South Korea (23) | Austria and South Korea (50) | Russia. |
| XXIII | 2007 | Turin (Italy) | Curling added | Russia (35) | Russia (67) | Canada. |
| XXIV | 2009 | Harbin (China) | The same | Russia (51) | China (102) | Canada. |
| XXV | 2011 | Erzurum (Turkey) | The same | Russia (39) | Russia (81) | Alena Prokhazkova (Slovakia, skiing) - 4 (4, 0, 0). Russia. |
| XXVI | 2013 | Trentino (Italy) | The same | Russia (50) | Russia (96) | Veronika Novakovskaya-Zimnyak (Poland, biathlon), Bo Reum Kim (South Korea, short track) - 4 (2, 2, 0) each. Canada. |
| Xxvii | 2015 | Granada (Spain), Strbske Pleso (Slovakia) | The same | Russia (56) | Russia (114) | Anastasia Slonova (Kazakhstan, cross-country skiing) - 4 (2, 2, 0). Russia. |
| Xxviii | 2017 | Alma-Ata (Kazakhstan) | The same | Russia (71) | Russia (156) | Dmitry Rostovtsev, Liliya Vasilieva (both - Russia, cross-country skiing) - 4 (3, 1, 0). Russia. |
* For gold - 3 points, for silver - 2, for bronze - 1.
Krasnoyarsk - the new capital
From March 2 to March 12, 2019, the 29th Winter Universiade will be hosted by Krasnoyarsk.
The second largest city in Siberia has a special mission in connection with the holding of such a significant event.
Firstly, large international events for Siberia are a rarity. We can recall only biathlon starts in the Tyumen region, the student’s world chess championship in Novokuznetsk, the world hockey championships in Khabarovsk, Kemerovo and Irkutsk, as well as international tournaments for the same game in Kemerovo, Novosibirsk, Abakan, Irkutsk, Khabarovsk. Thus, the Universiade symbolizes a new stage in the development of the largest region of Russia.
Secondly, Krasnoyarsk is a city of huge industrial, and therefore defense significance. Therefore, the access of foreigners to this city was previously very limited. The Universiade in Krasnoyarsk will thus become a symbol of the openness and peacefulness of Russia.
Thirdly, the Winter Universiade in Russia will be held for the first time.
Debut
At the Winter Universiade in Krasnoyarsk for the first time two sports debut in the program: the favorite in Siberia hockey with the ball, as well as orienteering skiing.
Someone started preparing from 4 years old
It is worth noting that some young athletes begin to prepare for the Universiade from a young age. Do not underestimate the popularity of winter sports!
Build a city of sports
For the World Winter Universiade in the city, a complete reconstruction of sports facilities is already coming to an end, including:
- Academy of winter sports. It includes the Sopka sports complex, the Snezhniy sports block, the half-pipe complex, a set of ski and freestyle tracks, the Freestyle block, the Rainbow sports complex, the Ski block, the ski stadium, the Gorny block. It will host freestyle, snowboarding, skiing and orienteering.
- Sports and Recreation Park "Beaver Log". Here will be held skiing competitions.
- Sports complex "Platinum Arena". An opening ceremony and a figure skating competition are planned here .
- Crystal Ice Arena. Will host hockey tournaments.
- Complex "Biathlon Academy". The name speaks for itself.
- The Arena-North complex will host a short track.
- In the famous wrestling Palace of Sports named after Ivan Yarygin an ice hall for curling will be equipped.
- The Yenisei stadium after the reconstruction (a large ice field will be covered with a roof and the stands will be converted) will receive hockey matches.
- The Pervomaisky indoor ice rink will be awaiting ice hockey matches.
- As a backup and training for the puck figures the ice rink "Dawn" also appears.
In a word, the World Winter Universiade in Krasnoyarsk will be fully equipped.