At a meeting held on 23 January 2024 at the CIES headquarters in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, an international jury reached a decision on the awarding of the 2024 FIFA/CIES International University Network Award for the best Final Project.
After evaluating the eighteen competing projects, the jury decided that the 2024 FIFA/CIES International University Network Award should go to the work submitted by Nilsa Montserrat Guzmán and Oriana Tovar Gómez, two students from Universidad Metropolitana in Caracas (Venezuela) with the title, "Entre lo virtual y lo presencial: Propuesta para la promoción y difusión del Poomsae competitivo del Taekwendo en Venezuela por medio de tecnologías de la información y de la comunicación (TICs)".
Their winning idea involves the design of a project aimed at promoting and disseminating competitive Poomsae in Venezuela by using information and communication technologies (ICTs) to encourage the professionalisation of athletes and coaches. This project will also have a positive impact on the development of Poomsae, providing solutions that can be implemented by the Venezuelan Taekwondo Federation and other sports organisations at national level.
Speaking after the announcement was made, the members of the competition jury said, "This project appealed to us because it meets many of the criteria defined for the FIFA/CIES International University Network Award, in particular the originality of the theme, the use of management tools covered in the courses, and the proposal of recommendations and solutions that are both tangible and realistic, and also applicable to the context of national sport. This is exactly the type of project that can be implemented in a practical way”.
Congratulations to the winning project group who will now have the opportunity to travel to Switzerland to visit the headquarters of FIFA and CIES as part of their prize.