International Military Sports Council

The International Military Sports Council (IMSC) or Conseil International du Sport Militaire (CISM), established 1948, is one of the largest multidisciplinary organisations in the world. It was founded on 18 February 1948 with Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands as its first five members. Today it is the second largest sports body in the world after the IOC, and organises various sporting events, including the Military World Games and World Military Cup for the armed forces of 133 member countries.

Soldiers, who may previously have met on the battlefield, now meet in friendship on the sports playing field. This is in accordance with the philosophy and the ideals which were set in CISM’s mission statement in 1998, signed by all the member countries.

The elected President of CISM is Colonel Hamad Kalkaba Malboum (Cameroon) and the General Secretariat is located in Brussels, Belgium under the management of the Secretary General, Colonel Morisod (Switzerland).

Overview
Numerous worldwide, continental and regional activities take place throughout 300 days of the year. The two pillars of CISM which function as the basis for these events are sport and solidarity. CISM has become a stakeholder which can no longer be ignored by the international sports community. It plays an important role in training elite athletes. A true pioneer in international sports solidarity, CISM has implemented projects organized in conjunction with the IOC (International Olympic Committee) and organisations such as United Nations and the European Community. We have developed a close working relationship with national and international federations and with all international sports authorities.

Sports
CISM annually organises over twenty Military World Championships for different sports in which all member nations can take part. They also organize continental and regional competitions and every four years the Military World Games are held. This is a multisports event which is organized by CISM in conjunction with CISM member nations. The 1st Military World Games were held in 1995 in Rome. 93 nations competed in 17 different sporting events to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the end of the 2nd World War. Four years later about 7000 participants from 82 countries met in Zagreb, Croatia to contribute to the great success of the 2nd World Military Games. The 3rd edition was held in Catania, Italy from the 4th to the 11th of December 2003. Participants from 84 different nations competed in 18 sports. The 4th CISM Military World Games were held in Hyderabad, India from October 14 till 21st, 2007. A record number of 101 participating countries celebrated world peace and showed the remarkable spirit of friendship and solidarity that unites all CISM member countries. The last edition took place in July 2011 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Champions


The International Military Sports can no longer keep track of the countless military champions who are also renowned for their exploits within civilian competitions. Paul Tergat, Kenteris, Thanou, Aleksey Nemov, Valentina Vezzali, Mark Huizinga, Pavel Kolobkov, Renata Mauer, Pyrros Dimas and Fabrozio Mori are but a few of the military athletes who regularly top international sporting events.

Symposia
CISM strives to organise international symposia at least every year to study various aspects of physical education and sport within the Armed forces. The last symposium about “How to emphasize the importance of sports within the Armed Forces at national and international level” took place in Sofia, Bulgaria from the 24th to the 25th of September 2008.

Sport for Peace


In 2005, CISM organised the seminar “Sport and peace” which was held in Mantova, Italy. Representatives from more than 22 countries, International Organizations, IOC, UN, UNICEF, Sports Associations, CISM Member Nations and organizations directly dealing with peace, health, sport and education attended the Seminar.

All participants agreed that sport had become a significant tool to help the rebuilding of societies in post conflict situations

In October 2007, during the 4th Military World Games in India,   CISM organised in partnership with the IOC, the Indian Olympic Association and the Organising Committee of the World Games, an International Forum on Sport for Peace, with the theme: “Sport, a concrete fundamental tool to promote Peace”. Through their lectures, the different authorities presented their experiences and expectations concerning the usage of sport as a tool to educate and help the process of reconstruction in post conflict situations.

Solidarity
Solidarity is one of the two pillars which guide CISM's activities. The Olympic solidarity is in fact based on the CISM model developed some decades ago. CISM's solidarity program has many parts. Projects range from organising technical clinics in less privileged countries and transporting athletes to championships, to shipping sports equipment to disadvantaged regions. Its most recent undertaking is the start of a regional development sports centre in Kenya.