FISU President Oleg Matytsin has been reflecting on 2019 and looking ahead to 2020 ©FISU

International University Sports Federation (FISU) President Oleg Matytsin has picked the Volunteer Leaders Academy in Russian city Kazan as his favourite event of this year.

In a slight change from its annual New Year's message, FISU asked Matytsin a number questions about the organisation and the year 2019, among other things.

Matytsin was in attendance at this year's Volunteer Leaders Academy, which took place in September and attracted around 130 students from 80 continental and National University Sport Federations (NUSFs).

Participants were given the status of FISU Student Ambassadors following the event's conclusion.

"What makes FISU really unique, we organise not only sport events but also educational ones," Matytsin said.

"Our project, Volunteers Leaders Academy in Kazan was organised for the fourth time in the Russian Federation.

"It united many young, talented students and I believe we, by organising this event, we have given them the chance to be more experienced, more educated, more professional as the leaders of tomorrow."

Matytsin said he is most looking forward to seeing the development of the World University Championships (WUCs) next year.

In the 2020 season, Argentina, Morocco and Ukraine will host FISU events for the first time.

Marrakesh in Morocco will stage the WUC Cross Country on March 7, while Argentinean city La Plata will play host to the WUC Rugby Sevens from September 17 to 19 and Dnipro in Ukraine will welcome the WUC Waterski and Wakeboard from September 24 to 27.

Events will take place in America, Europe, Africa and Asia. 

The 2020 series will also be the inaugural year for the new cluster events, mind sports and combat sports, which combine two and six sports, respectively.

"In 2020, we will organise 29 World University Championships, and I am very happy that the three new National University Sport Federations will organise events, like our friends from Argentina, from Morocco and from Ukraine," Matytsin said.

"Also, for the first time, chess and bridge will be combined in one World University Mind Championships.

"Wakeboarding will be a new part of our World University Championships programme.

"Doing this, we are really very confident about the future of our project in sport, and we wish to all our friends in all federations success."