ARCHERY

Archery was recognized by FISU in 1996. It was an optional discipline in six University Games and in the last 4 editions and, for the first time in Naples, it will become part of the mandatory sports, demonstrating the great growth of the sport. There will be individual and team competitions (men’s, women’s and mixed) both in the compound and in the recurve.

ARTISTIC GYMNASTICS

It has basically been a costant presence in the Universiade since its second edition in Sofia in 1961. Among the most spectacular and followed disciplines, artistic gymnastics has ever been present in the compulsory sports programme. The Universiade has always been a springboard for gymnasts in their career.

ATHLETICS

Athletics is definitely the largest individual programme in the whole Universiade, with over 1000 athletes involved in 50 disciplines. It has been there since 1959. In the following editions, several world records have been set, including one of the most enduring: The 200 meters won by Pietro Mennea in Mexico City in 1979.

BASKETBALL

Basketball is one of the compulsory team sports always present in the Universiade: Indeed, the participating teams in Turin in 1959 were 15 and the Soviet Union won the first gold medal. In the next edition in Sofia the tournament was also open to the women’s national teams. 16 will be the teams taking part in Napoli 2019 in the men’s tournament as well as in the women’s tournament.

DIVING

Mandatory sport from the second summer Universiade in Sofia in 1961, diving is closely tied to universitary sport program. So many athletes, that have became world and olympic champions, have partecipated to university games, growing the level of the tournament so far. In Napoli will be awarded medals in 1m and 3m springboard and 10m platform individual both male and female, while for synchronized medals will be awarded in 3m springboard and in 10m platform for male, female and mixed.

FENCING

With over 300 participating athletes, fencing is one of the symbolic sports of the Summer Universiade, as well as the springboard for those taking part in the world championships and the Olympics. Fencing has been present since the first edition of Turin in 1959 and was also one of the first sports to be included in the university program.

FOOTBALL

The most played and known sport in the world, as well as one of the programmes with the largest number of participants of the whole Universiade. Football has become a compulsory sport in the 1985 Kobe edition, whereas the first time for women’s tournament was in Buffalo in 1993. 24 will be the teams participating in Napoli 2019, equally divided between male and female teams.

JUDO

Judo has been inserted as compulsory sport in Bangkok in 2007, after being an optional sport in Tokyo in 1967, in Kobe in 1985 and in Fukuoka in 1995. Six men’s weight divisions (-66 Kg; -73Kg; -81 Kg; -90 Kg; +90 Kg; Open) and just as many women’s weight divisions (-52 Kg; -57 Kg; -63 Kg; -70 Kg; +70 Kg; Open).

RHYTHMIC GYMNASTICS

The only compulsory programme only for women. Rhythmic gymnastics was introduced in the Universiade programme in the Sheffield 1991 edition as an optional sport, but since the next edition it became a compulsory sport, due to the large audience and the growing interest. All the gym apparatus is expected for Napoli 2019. Moreover, teams  that will take on 5 balls and 3 hoops and 2 ribbons.

RUGBY 7S

It is one of the optional sports of Napoli 2019: Rugby 7s is a faster and more spectacular variant of classic rugby. It is the second time that this programme has become part of the Summer Universiade, but there have already been several editions of world university championships, demonstrating the growth of a discipline that also debuted at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games .

SAILING

Optional discipline at Napoli 2019 and it could not be otherwise, for the great tradition of Naples for this sport. Sailing was add recently to Fisu Program (first university sailing world championship was held in 2002), appeared for the first time at Summer Universiade in Palma de Mallorca in 1999 and later in Shenzen in 20199 like optional sport.

SHOOTING SPORT

Rifle/pistol and shotgun, both optional disciplines in the Napoli 2019 programme, are considered by Fisu as a unique discipline. They made their first appearance in Bangkok in 2007 with over 450 athletes. Then they were proposed again in the 2011, 2013 and 2015 editions.

SWIMMING

Together with athletics, swimming is the programme with the largest number of participants. The level of competition and the number of participants has increased from one edition to another, growing at the same pace with one of the most played sports in the world.

TABLE TENNIS

Table tennis is one of the most growing disciplines internationally: The increasing number of spectators and players makes it one of the most followed disciplines. Thanks to a real forerunner sucha as China, table tennis appears for the first time in a Universiade programme in the Beijing edition in 2001 and becomes a compulsory discipline in the Izmir edition in 2005.

TAEKWONDO

Taekwondo is a relatively young discipline, even at the Olympic level, but entered the university sports programme in 1986. It has been an optional discipline since 2003, but it became part of the compulsory sports programme in Taipei 2017.

TENNIS

Tennis is one of the first sports to have entered Fisu’s programmes, starting with the Universiade, where it has been a compulsory discipline since the first edition of Turin in 1959. Thanks to the collaboration between Fisu and ITF, different stadiums of tennis were built during the different editions of the games, to ensure the highest level of the tournament for both athletes and the audience.

VOLLEYBALL

Just like basketball, volleyball has been one of the permanent programmes since the first edition of the Universiade. In Turin, in 1959, there were 12 teams, while the women’s tournament started in the next edition with 6 teams. Over time, volleyball tournaments have become one of the most followed.

WATERPOLO

From seven male team in the first edition of Universiade, to 20 split in male and female team in Napoli 2019. The growth of waterpolo can be seen with the increase of teams and partecipants during the different Universiadi editions. In Belgrade 2009, the tournament was open to female teams.