The Universiade returns home: the passing of the flag at Turin 2025 in Lake Placid

The Universiade returns home: it all began in Turin in 1959 thanks to the foresight of the historic president of CUS Torino Primo Nebiolo. On the occasion of the Closing Ceremony of the Lake Placid Games, the passage of the FISU flag took place between the US town and the Piedmontese capital, which will host the XXXII Winter University World Games from 13 to 23 January 2025. Like Olympia with the Olympics, under the Mole is kept the Flame of Knowledge: Turin is the permanent seat of the brazier, located in the courtyard of the Rectorate of the University of Turin.

Piedmont Land of Sport, reads the claim of the FISU Games. In addition to Turin (figure skating, short track, curling and ice hockey), four other municipalities will be protagonists: Bardonecchia (alpine skiing, snowboarding and freestyle) and Pragelato (cross-country skiing and biathlon) for snow sports, Torre Pellice and Pinerolo for ice hockey. The celebration towards 2025 began in the Herb Brooks Arena, the sports temple of Lake Placid where in the 1980 Olympics the American amateurs unexpectedly beat the Soviet professionals, giving life to the miracle on the ice. Here was held the final of the men’s university ice tournament, won by Canada, the last event of the event in which the Italian CUSI delegation won 10 medals, of which 3 gold, 3 silver and 4 bronze . One of those of the most precious metal was worn by the twenty-year-old Piedmontese student of Psychology Elisa Fava, who climbed to the top step of the podium in the parallel giant snowboard and who now dreams of repeating herself on the snow at home in exactly two years. Overall, this is the best Italian expedition abroad in the history of the Winter University World Games.

Following the speech by Mayor Stefano Lo Russo, who took the FISU flag from the hands of Lake Placid counterpart Art Devlin, was the performance of the Nuclear Tactical Penguins, guests for the first time in the United States. The band from Bergamo, third in Sanremo in 2020 and winner last year at the MTV Europe Music Awards, sang two songs from the album Fake News, already platinum: Giovani Wannabe and Zen, which made the wild American public dance in the stands packed houses at Herb Brooks Arena.

The ceremony was attended by the President of the Piedmont Region Alberto Cirio, the regional councilor for Sport Fabrizio Ricca and, in addition to the mayor, the municipal councilor for Sport Domenico Carretta, the delegate of CUSI and representative of Italy in the FISU Executive Committee Lorenzo Lentini, the president of the organizing committee of Torino 2025 and of Edisu Piemonte Alessandro Ciro Sciretti and the vice president of Torino 2025 and president of CUS Torino Riccardo D’Elicio.

“After the Naples 2019 Universiade, it’s Turin 2025’s turn: it will be a new success for the whole country and for Italian sport, as the great result in the medal table of the blue delegation here in Lake Placid already testifies – said Lorenzo Lentini, delegate of CUSI and representative of Italy in the Executive Committee of FISU -. On the long wave of the success of the 2007 Universiade, Turin will surprise all the universities of the world: the Italian University Sports Federation – FederCUSI is ready to go».

These are the words of the Organizing Committee of Turin 2025 with the shared message of the president Alessandro Ciro Sciretti and the vicar vice-president Riccardo D’Elicio: «Here in Lake Placid we have reached the top with a triumphal edition and now a downward path begins. The flag of the World University Games finally returns home and the countdown begins. We look forward to seeing you on Saturday 28 January at 9 pm at the Pala Alpitour in Turin to welcome the arrival of the FISU flag and to launch the volunteer recruitment campaign, which will be the heart of our event. Don’t miss the call!».

«We immediately believed in the challenge of bringing the Winter University World Games to our Region and today, in front of thousands of young athletes from all over the world, we can look back on the months of work that preceded this success and say that we made the bet right – say the president of the Piedmont Region Alberto Cirio and the regional councilor for Sport Fabrizio Ricca -. Turin and Piedmont are for the Universiade the equivalent of Athens and Greece for the Olympics. In fact, it is with us that the brazier from which everyone will have to pass to light the fire of their games will remain forever. The fact that the Universiade will return to our territory in 2025 is a confirmation of this bond and a great opportunity for development for the tourism system, for the university system and for the tourism of a Region that will see its mountains populated by thousands of young athletes from all over the world ready to discover the beauties and potential of Piedmont».

«For the City of Turin it was exciting to take part in the ceremony and welcome the Universiade flag from the hands of the mayor of Lake Placid – declare the mayor Stefano Lo Russo and the councilor for sport and major events Domenico Carretta -. Thanks to excellent teamwork, we will have the honor of hosting the 2025 edition, after those of 1966 and 2007. In two years, many young male and female athletes will arrive in Turin eager to win a prestigious medal, university students who will also have the opportunity to visit and discover the beauties of our city. We are proud to underline on this occasion that more and more students from all over the world are choosing to enroll in our universities as evidence of the high educational standard offered and the professionalism of a high-level teaching staff”.

For the first time at the Turin 2025 Games, the sports competition will be accompanied by the Brain Storm academic challenge, which will bring together the best university excellences from all over the world who will compete on the mental disciplines chosen by the 4 Piedmontese universities and by the students: they too will dream to win the medals, just like the student athletes engaged in the Piedmontese snow and ice.

The FISU flag will arrive in Turin on Saturday 28 January. From 9 pm, at the Pala Alpitour, there will be the presentation ceremony of the flag and the launch of the recruitment campaign for volunteers, who will represent a precious support for the success of the greatest university sporting event on a world scale. To participate in next Saturday’s evening, with free admission (by 10 pm), it will be sufficient to register, subject to availability.

During the celebration for the arrival of the flag, a DJ set will be organized which will start at 21 and end in the late evening. Furthermore, between 10 and 11 pm there will be a show created with the artistic production of Masters of Magic and the exceptional conducting of Walter Rolfo.