DEAR FRIENDS OF UNIVERSITY SPORTS,
In the EUSA 20th Anniversary Book,
we remember the first activities of our
association after its foundation in 1999
and election of the first EUSA Executive
Committee, which thereafter prepared
all the necessary grounds for the start of
EUSA’s sports programme back in 2001.
We observe the growth of our sport activi-
ties from the first two European Universi-
ties Championships organised that year to
twenty-one editions of the Championships
held in 2019, while also including an over-
view of the European Universities Games
organised since the first edition in 2012,
emphasising at the same time the best
student-athletes and university teams
who have participated in these events and
won the titles of European Universities
Champions.
Since its establishment, many gatherings,
being the General Assemblies, Executive
Committee or Commission Meetings, have
been organised to discuss the activities
and plans for further development of the
association and university sport in Europe.
We also remember the Educational Activi-
ties, Conferences, Conventions, Forums,
Symposiums and Seminars organised over
the last two decades, bringing together
university sport family members from all
around the world.
Looking not only to have an impact
through sport, but also through various
projects and initiatives, EUSA through its
Institute have been involved in several
transnational partnership projects, es-
pecially in recent years. Through these
projects, supported by the European
Union, the International University Sport
Federation as well as other organisations
and institutions, a wide variety of topics
including Anti-Doping, Dual Career, Educa-
tion through Sport, Equal Opportunities,
Exchanges and Mobility in Sport, Good
Governance, Inclusion, Safe-Guarding,
Skills Development, Sustainability and
Volunteering, have been covered.As behind every organisation stand the
people, we also acknowledge the individu-
als who have been involved in the work of
our association, being the delegates at our
events, the members of committees and
commissions, volunteers and organis-
ers of our events. Each one of them has
contributed a significant piece to the story
and success of EUSA. Saying this, I would
like to use the occasion to express my
gratitude to my co-workers and long-term
volunteers, who joined us in the EUSA
Secretariat in Ljubljana, Slovenia, for their
cooperation in the association’s activities
during all these years.The success of EUSA is also a result
of great cooperation with our member
and partner organisations, which have
helped EUSA build its programme andstructure and by doing so, become a well-
recognised and respected European sport
organisation.At the end of this publication, we have
listed several EUSA activities in the period
to come. In 2019, EUSA adopted an ambi-
tious Development Strategy 2019-2024 to
chart the direction for the future and we
are eagerly looking forward to its realisa-
tion. Some of our plans for the year 2020
had to be changed due to the COVID-
outbreak. Nevertheless, we strongly
believe we will be back on track with our
activities already in 2021, when the 5th edi-
tion of the European Universities Games
will be organised in Belgrade, Serbia.Finally, let me express my gratitude to the
editors, Fabio and Andrej, for preparing
this 20th Anniversary Book.Looking forward to our future activities, I
would like to use the opportunity to warm-
ly invite you to join us at our event events,
while I hope that you will enjoy reading our
anniversary publication!Matjaz Pecovnik
Secretary General