On September 20, the Russian International Olympic University (RIOU) held a ceremony to celebrate the commencement of a new academic year. The ceremony was attended by President of the Russian Olympic Committee Stanislav Pozdnyakov, Executive Director of the Russian Olympians Foundation Alexander Katushev, Rector of the Armenian State Institute of Physical Culture and Sport Tigran Simonyan, President of the Russian Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined Federation Dmitry Dubrovskiy, General Director of the Russian Association of Sport Facilities Yelena Suzdaleva, and head of International Relations at HVPM, India’s leading sports university, Pranav Chendke.

RIOU’s new cohort were addressed by Russian Minister of Sport Mikhail Degtyarev. He said, “RIOU’s graduates are Olympic champions, world and European champions. This year the university’s programmes of further professional training have admitted students from 10 different countries. This, again, confirms the relevance of our country’s expertise in the sports management field. I wish all of us faith, hope and love. Because love for sport is what unites us.”

The 2024 intake includes champions and medal winners from various editions of Olympic and Paralympic Games: Anastasia Tatareva and Yelena Shalamova (rhythmic gymnastics), Yevgeny Klimov (ski jumping), Anastasia Ivanova (fencing), Dmitry Kokarev (swimming), Natalia Korosteleva (cross-country skiing), Anna Timofeyeva (water polo), Niyaz Ilyasov (judo), and other accomplished athletes representing 27 sports. Among this year’s students are also senior officials of Russian sports federations – for example, ten-time Olympic champion in rhythmic gymnastics Olga Kapranova. 

RIOU Rector, full member of the Russian Academy of Education Lev Belousov said:

“In today's sports industry, it is more than ever important to constantly develop one’s management skills, to know how to build effective communication with partners and how to leverage the tools of project management and personal brand development. We assist professional athletes in meeting one of their most difficult challenges – making a smooth transition from competitive sport to sports management. Our courses draw on the world’s best practices in sports management, and we will be happy to share them with the new cohort of students. This is what we see as the main mission of the Olympic University.”

A large number of RIOU students are financially supported by the Russian Olympians Foundation. This year the Foundation provided 44 grants for members of Russian national teams in Olympic and Paralympic sports. Some of the grant holders have already retired from sports competitions, while others will combine their studies and competitive sport.

The Foundation’s Executive Director Alexander Katushev said:

“This year 44 recipients of our grants will study on RIOU’s programmes, representing 24 regions of Russia and 23 Olympic sports. A total of 244 retired Russian athletes have completed RIOU’s professional retraining courses, and it would be hard to name a Russian region where there are no Foundation’s fellows working for the local sports industry after graduation from RIOU. Over the years of our cooperation, RIOU has produced more than 400 managers now working at different levels of the sports industry in more than 70 regions of Russia. I hope that our fellows will succeed in reaching new heights in their lives, and will emerge as top-notch professionals that are so much sought-after around the world.”

Among this year’s students are 25 participants and 13 medal winners from Olympic and Paralympic Games. President of the Russian Olympic Committee, four-time Olympic champion Stanislav Pozdnyakov congratulated the attendees, saying:

“I am truly honoured to be here with you today and to extend congratulations on the start of a new academic year on behalf of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). ROC and RIOU have very close business and friendly relations. In fact, the whole life of the Russian International Olympic University is inextricably linked with the Russian Olympic Committee. I am very pleased that ROC attaches great importance to working with you, dear students, and that many RIOU graduates end up as our employees. When I am considering an applicant’s CV, I pay much attention to the Education section. And if I see “RIOU” there, it’s a synonym of top quality for me. I hope that you will gain invaluable new knowledge, as well as build new friendships, because the concept of friendship lies at the core of Olympism; it is one of the key Olympic values. I wish you every success and good luck in any field of life, and a volume of precious experience at RIOU. Congratulations, dear friends!” 

Twenty two students on RIOU’s Master of Sport Administration course are winners of the prestigious RIOU Scholarships. They hail from 10 countries of the world, with China and India having the largest representation. RIOU’s overall geographic reach now spans 87 countries.

As part of the ceremony, RIOU signed a number of partnership agreements with organisations that have been collaborating with RIOU in various educational programmes over the course of many years. The agreements were signed by RIOU Rector Lev Belousov, Rector of the Armenian State Institute of Physical Culture and Sport Tigran Simonyan, President of the Russian Ski Jumping and Nordic Combined Federation Dmitry Dubrovskiy, and General Director of the Russian Association of Sport Facilities Yelena Suzdaleva. The agreements provide for the implementation of a series of professional development programmes for the Russian and Armenian sports industries.

The ceremony for the new academic year was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere, with words of gratitude from RIOU graduates, words of appreciation from RIOU’s partners, as well encouragement from accomplished sports administrators for the students to take full advantage of their courses and live the best year of their lives.

To build trusting and open relationships among the new intake, a team-building session was organised at the end of the ceremony in the format of an educational workshop “Effective Management of Resource Allocation for Students’ Learning Pathways”. The session was facilitated by Anton Antipin, an expert in the field of organisational development and a permanent member of the RIOU faculty.

As in the past years, the day of celebrations ended with the Olympic Games of the Olympic University, which brought together RIOU students and faculty members. The team of the Master of Sport Management course emerged victorious from an exciting competitive struggle.