The 2020 World University Canoe Sprint Championship organized by the International University Sports Federation (FISU) will take place in Zaslavl on 21-23 August, BelTA learned from the organizers of the competitions.
Competing in the championship will be more than 400 representatives of the university sport from Belarus, Australia, Argentina, China, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, the UK, Germany, Hungary, Iran, Italy, Japan, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Slovakia, Ukraine and the United States.
It is expected that Russia will join the competitions, too. The Belarusian team will include 22 athletes. The championship will comprise 28 medal events. The mascot of the forum is Zheuzhyk the Raccoon. “Zheuzhyk was named after one of the characters of the Belarusian mythology, the guardian of rivers. He is a symbol of friendliness of the Belarusian nation,” the organizers of the competitions said.
Belarus has already hosted world university championships under the aegis of FISU. Zaslavl played host to the World University Canoe Sprint Championship in 2014. Minsk Arena hosted the World University Speed Skating Championship in 2018.
The organizers of the 2020 World University Canoe Sprint Championship are the Education Ministry, the Sport and Tourism Ministry, the Minsk Oblast Executive Committee, Minsk City Hall, the University Physical Education and Sport Center, the Belarusian Canoe Association and the Belarusian University Sport Association.