CISM Goal
The goal is to promote sport in armed forces, all over the world. By promoting sports, CISM fosters confidence & cohesion amongst soldiers, creates military fit & motivated soldiers, enhances attractiveness of military service, identifies, trains & motivates talents and provides experience by international competition.
Our goal is also to use sport for deconfliction & peace building between countries. As long as we exist, we will promote friendship through sport.
Colonel Nilton Gomes Rolim Filho, CISM President, has the honour to convoke in statutory session the CISM member nations, the CISM authorities and the CISM Commissions and Sports Committees to its 79th CISM General Assembly and Congress whose activities will take place from 12 to 19 May 2024 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
CISM History
Five founding nations –Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands- created CISM while meeting in Nice at a fencing event on 18 February 1948. Although they were only European countries, CISM founding nations did have a global project in mind.
This desire among the military to meet in sports arenas instead of battlegrounds was nothing new in 1948. Indeed, just after the First World War, the first Interallied Games were organised upon the initiative of General Pershing and his entourage with 18 nations representing five continents. In 1919, 1500 athletes competed in 24 different sports in front of a large audience in Joinville in the Paris suburbs.
Following the Second World War, the Allied Forces Sports Council was revived. The second Interallied Games were held in Berlin in 1946. Only athletics competitions were organised. The desire to meet among soldiers was stronger than the need to produce striking sports achievements at all costs. On May 1946, the Allied Forces Sports Council was set up, namely by Colonel Debrus and Major Mollet who were among the founding fathers of CISM two years later. Unfortunately, because of political discord, the Allied Forces Sports Council was extinguished in 1947. However, the ideal was rekindled the following year with the founding of CISM and the rise of a global vision.
Since its foundation in 1948, CISM’s universality became increasing real, developed as it was by the Presidents and Secretaries General who led the organisation over the years. In 1950, Argentina and Egypt joined the –by then – nine European countries. In 1951, it was the USA’s turn to join. In 1952, Iraq, the Lebanon, Pakistan and Syria became members and in 1954 Brazil.
Over the years, membership has progressed at a steady pace. The emergence of Cold War and the setting up of SKDA- a military sports organisation whose member nations were also members of the Warsaw Pact-denied CISM the official universal status it want craved and needed to be recognized by the IOC. But the political turmoil at the end of the 80’s and more specifically the fall of the Berlin wall all of a sudden gave renewed impetus to CISM’ expansion . In the space of just four years (1991-1995), 31 new member countries joined the organisation. Such rapid progress led to recognition by international institutions as the IOC.
General Assembly & Congress
The General Assembly is the supreme authority of CISM, composed of delegations of member nations. The annual meeting of the General Assembly is dedicated to statutory and budgetary matters, acceptance of reports, voting and elections. The statutory General Assembly meets once a year. The place and date are set two years in advance. The place is determined so as to rotate among the continents. The organization of a General Assembly is used tospread CISM’s influence in the region.
The General Assembly of CISM approves the CISM strategic and annual business plans, the accounts and the budget, the acceptance of new member nations and changes in related policy, the final status of inactive or suspended nations and changes in related policy, all amendments to the Statutes, all amendments to the Policy Manual governing financial and electoral matters, the establishment of new Honors and Awards or changes in related policy. The General Assembly also reviews the results of the strategic and annual business plans and provides guidance as may be required, conducts statutory elections, appoints the auditors, considers other matters placed before it by any CISM body, decides on the dissolution of CISM.
CISM Congress
The Congress is the annual meeting of delegations of member nations immediately preceding the General Assembly. The Congress is dedicated to strategic and business planning, discussions and debates, presentations and exchange of information.