The 1st Panamerican Congress on University Sport, jointly organized by FISU America and the NUSF of Venezuela as a Forum, was held in Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela between April 24 and 29, 2017.

The opening ceremony featured welcome speeches by the Minister of University Education, Science and Technology Mr Hugbel Roa; the Mayor of the Bolivar Municipality, Barcelona Mr Guillermo Rodriguez; the President of FISU America Mr Alim Neto; 1st Vice President of the International University Spotr Federation (FISU) Mr Leonz Eder; Simon Rodriguez University Rector Ms Alejandrina Reyes; Director of the National Sports Institute Mr Pedro Infante; and the President of the Organizing Committee Ms Sandy Rodriguez.



FISU America President Mr Neto, highlighted the fact that for the first time in the history of FISU America, sports directors, coaches, student athletes, representatives of governmental organizations and academic leaders can exchange their experiences and expand their knowledge about the different aspects of the sports environment in their universities and countries.

On behalf of FISU, Mr Eder welcomed all the participants from more than a dozen countries, including Canada, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Peru, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. He invited the participants to share their vision and goals, exchange ideas and experiences and to learn from each other.



Students from more than 10 universities also took part of the activities, and the event was also attended by different TV crews, radio teams and lots of journalists from the written press.

The forum covered topics such as Sports Management and Sports Policies, Sports and Human Development, Anti-doping, Training, Medicine and Psychology. The participants were able to share ideas and knowledge on key issues related to the development of sports and university athletes in the Americas.



Forum participants were also able to attend the Opening Ceremony of the XVI University Sports Games of Central America and the Caribbean (ODUCC), featuring over 400 participants competing in 8 sports.



At the same time, the meeting of the Executive Committee of FISU America took place. At the meeting, the operation of the entity was analysed at this stage, reviewing the current situation of different countries.



In the near future, the Pan American tournaments will begin, with the first appointment in June, with the 3×3 Basketball in Buenos Aires, Argentina. FISU America, formerly called Pan-American University Sport Organization (ODUPA), will have a new assembly at Taipei Universiade in August and in October, the strategic dialogue will be held with FISU in Goiana, Brazil, and will project the axes of university sport for the future, together with federations of the American continent.

For more information, please see www.fisuamerica.com.