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Peruvian athletes are proud to represent their universities

FISU 5 August 2020

The University Sports Federation of Peru (FEDUP) aims to ensure that all university students associate sports with their university life as much as academic activities.

 

“Our objective since my colleagues and I assumed charge of this federation, was to consolidate our institutional structure,” says FEDUP President Carlos Torres Llapa in a conversation with FVLA participant Camila Romero. “Today, we have a FEDUP base in each department of Peru.”

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FEDUP is currently made up of 56 public and private universities nationwide and this network requires good communication methods.

 

“We have updated our way of interacting with our athletes,” adds Carlos Torres Llapa. “To date, we have a websitean email database, a Facebook account, as well as Instagram and Twitter. We also have a YouTube channel and a radio program called Pasión Universitaria.”

 

Peru 1“We provide detailed information about our programmes, events, and we invite students to participate in local championships as well as FISU events,” he continues.

 

The history of FEDUP began in 1920 with the name of ‘Federación Universitaria de Deportes del Perú’ at the Universidad Mayor de San Marcos, which came to organise the first-ever tournaments at university level in the country. In the year 1924, the University Federation Soccer Club was consolidated and gave birth to the ‘Club Univeritario de Deportes’, who were the founding members. The Federation in 1928 changed its name to ‘Federación Deportiva Universitaria del Perú’ and its acronym FEDUP,  based on the Spanish name. 

 

Last year, FEDUP saw the participation of 11,700 athletes in various organised events. “We had the University Leagues in basketball, football, futsal and volleyball, and also the Regional University Games in the same sports. We also held the National University Championships in which individual sports were included,” explains Carlos Torres.

 

Because FEDUP believes that sport complements academic activity, the federation has urged universities to consider a scholarship programme for athletes. “Athletes are proud to represent their university in FEDUP tournaments both nationally and internationally,” explains Carlos Torres enthusiastically. “The national federations of the different sports that are practiced in FEDUP have recognised the sports results of our championships in their national ranking, and this has been a great benefit for university athletes.”

 

Peru 3In 2019 FEDUP changed its statutes, in accordance with FISU, for the consistent development of university sport. “The Gender Equality Commission was formed,” says the FEDUP President, adding that “This year, we will send a futsal player from the Ricardo Palma University in Lima as a female representative to the FISU Volunteer Leaders Academy (FVLA).”

 

For the year 2020, FEDUP had scheduled the national university games ‘UNIVERSIADA NACIONAL’. More than 5000 athletes usually participate in this event, based on their classification in the different sport disciplines that are carried out in the regional university games. Carlos Torres says, “We are evaluating how to carry out these events to maintain student activity in sports, all the while putting health first and following the health and safety protocols dictated by the government”.

 

The University Sports Federation of Peru has the experience of university athletes participating in international events of FISU and FISU AMERICA, and FEDUP hopes to be the organisers of these international events in the future. To conclude, Carlos Torres comments optimistically “We aspire to be the hosts of the South American University Games 2021 and the World University Futsal Championship 2022.”

 

By: Camila Romero