Debrecen and Miskolc won the right to host the 2024 European University Games in 2018. The Organizing Committee was faced with the challenge of organizing the biggest ever multi-sport event in Hungary. The groundwork began with the winning bid, with around a thousand people working to get everything ready for the start of the event six years later on 10 July.
Hosting the athletes and their crews was in itself a major challenge for the hosts, with almost 5,000 people arriving at the two venues. This amounted to a total of around forty-five thousand overnight stays, and the hosts were able to meet demands to the fullest. Over eight hundred shuttle buses transported the competitors like clockwork, while around two hundred people in the kitchens prepared approximately one hundred and sixty-five thousand meals.
Experience shows that the competitions went according to plan. Some three thousand eight hundred students from thirty-six nations of the "old continent" competed in eighteen sports. A thousand and two hundred people followed the events from the sidelines, with a team of approximately nine hundred volunteers.
The fights generated around fifteen thousand photos and more than eighty videos, while the content posted online generated 21 million hits, over 100 thousand reactions and more than 20 thousand followers and subscribers on social platforms. During the two weeks, almost four hundred and fifty matches were broadcast live on the official YouTube channel and hundreds of media reports werepublished.
The 2024 EUG was not only about the students on the pitches, but also about the students off the pitches, with a variety of professional, educational and entertainment programmers. Athletes from diverse countries came to Hungary with a complete intercultural package of experiences from the European University Games, and Debrecen and Miskolc proved to be an excellent place to make new friends and acquaintances.
The closing ceremony of the event was also worthy of the level of the games: more than two thousand participants said goodbye to the games at the Campus Festival, the largest music festival in Eastern Hungary.
At the closing ceremony on Wednesday, Zoltán Szilvássy, Rector of the University of Debrecen, spoke of the magical atmosphere of the event.
- As the slogan of the event proclaims, the EUG is not only about sport, but also about happiness. For the past two weeks, I have seen nothing but smiling faces," said Zoltán Szilvássy.
Balázs Hankó, Minister of Culture and Innovation, stressed the community-building power of the event.
- Alongside sporting success and excellence, the European University Games have built lifelong friendships and bridges across borders. Hungary's university athletes excelled, finishing at the top of the overall medal table with 16 gold medals, which is something to be particularly proud of," said the Minister.
EUSA President Adam Roczek summed up the past two weeks with satisfaction.
- I sincerely hope that the experience gained at the EUG will benefit the athletes not only on the field but also in life. I wish to thank the organizing committee for their hard work and I can safely say that we have had the best European University Games ever," said Adam Roczek.
After the closing speeches, MEFS President Lajos Mocsai handed over the flag of the event to the organizers of the next Games (Salerno 2026).
The organization of the event and its successful implementation is a huge feat of arms and undoubtedly a major milestone in the life of Hungarian university sport, which is of particular importance for the development of future generations. For the duality of sport and higher education not only has the primary benefits of a healthy lifestyle, a multifaceted career path and the development of international contacts, but is also one of the best ways of building community.
Press Centre - PKZs
