Taipei 2017 organisers share their experience and know-how with Napoli 2019

The Taipei 2017 Debriefing got underway on 13 November in the host city of the upcoming Summer Universiade. Organised by FISU, the event brought 28 members of the Taipei 2017 team to Napoli to share their knowledge and experience

Lorenzo Lentini, President of the Italian University Sports Centre (CUSI), waves the FISU flag at the conclusion of the Taipei 2017 Closing Ceremony. The event signifies the passing of the Summer Universiade spirit to the upcoming host. 

NAPOLI – When the FISU flag was passed from Taipei to Napoli and the world-renowned San Carlo Theatre sent the familiar notes to “O Sole Mio” reverberating through Taipei Stadium for the Closing Ceremony to the 29^th Summer Universiade, it wasn’t the last time the two organising committees would formally meet.

The ultimate official meeting between the previous and future Summer Universiade hosts is currently underway in Napoli, Italy for the Taipei 2017 Debriefing. The four-day event provides a structured forum for the operational and organisational lessons learned from Taipei 2017 to be passed on to the 2019 Summer Universiade hosts.  

 FISU Secretary General and CEO Eric Saintrond (centre) at a Wednesday debrief session, flanked between Napoli 2019 Director General Gianluca Basile (right) and CUSI President Lorenzo Lentini

Taipei 2017 organisers came to the Italian city with a team of 25 sport management experts and three interpreters to share the successes and setbacks they faced turning the idea of hosting the Summer Universiade into a reality.

Back in Taipei, hosting the Summer Universiade has been hailed as an undeniable success as the event garnered the attention of the region, sold over 87-percent of available tickets, and drew student-athletes from 134 nations together to compete. While watching a recent documentary on the Summer Universiade, the Mayor of Taipei was even moved to tears of joy.

Taipei is following up its inspiring performance this summer by bringing strong contingent to the knowledge transfer sessions. Taipei 2017 attendees say they know the importance of the Summer Universiade and as part of their legacy of hosting the event they want to pass on the lessons they learned in the six-year lead-up to the largest university multi-sport event in the world.  

In addition, Taipei Universiade Deputy CEO Chuen-Ming Hsueh had high remarks for the Napoli debrief.  “I very much appreciate Napoli 2019 for the warm welcome,” Mr. Hsueh said. “It has been a great pleasure to visit Napoli in person and share our experience with the 2019 organising committee. I believe that we have delivered the best of our knowledge as an organising committee for the Summer Universiade. I sincerely hope that through the debriefing sessions this week, we’re able to help Napoli 2019 carry out a fantastic Summer Universiade in 2019.”

The Taipei 2017 organising committee brought a strong contingent of managers and directors to Napoli for the Summer Universiade 2017 debriefing session 

With just under 600 days to go until Napoli welcomes the university sport world to its city for the 60^th anniversary of the Summer Universiade, there have been plenty of topics to cover. All told, the debrief covers 21 key functional areas presentations for putting on a successful Summer Universiade, from the Athletes’ Village to Broadcasting to Venues and Transportation.

The debriefing continues into its final day on Thursday, with knowledge transfer session into education, marketing, media and transportation, and others to come.

The debriefing was a four-day event in Napoli, where the 2019 Summer Universiade hosts learned from the successes and setbacks of previous organising committees 

Putting on an international multi-sport event presents challenges, but 2017 Summer Universiade organisers say the effort was definitely worth it, with the Taipei City mayor recently calling the event the “miracle in the summer of 2017.”

“We joined forces and overcame difficulties to make history, so I think the Universiade will become an unforgettable memory for many,” Mayor Wen-je Ko, said. “The world got to see us as we are.”