Dear friends, dear colleagues,

The Russian International Olympic University came to being thanks to the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, and it is the main recipient of the intellectual riches created by Sochi 2014. Equipped with the managerial expertise of the past Games, we are now entering a new stage in our development. By expanding the scope of activities, RIOU is becoming both a leading centre for sports business training, as well as an international centre of culture, research, technology and innovation.

In the next few years Russia will be hosting a number of high profile sporting events. The staging of major sports competitions, and work in the sports industry in general, require sports managers to have highly specialised knowledge and skills that meet state-of-the-art standards.

Our University seeks to ensure that these high standards are continuously achieved. RIOU combines qualities of a classical university and a business school, so all the courses we offer focus on contemporary sports management practices. A major feature of our flagship Master of Sport Administration (MSA) programme is the opportunity for students to study and creatively use the expertise gained by the organisers of the Sochi 2014 Winter Games. RIOU is the main custodian of the 2014 Games Archive, and we see our mission as preserving and enhancing the Olympic legacy, especially for educational and research purposes.

Our MSA course is delivered in both English and Russian for full-time students, and in a distance-learning format for students on individual pathways. RIOU's faculty comprises some of the best Russian and international professors from over 10 countries. The student body is just as internationally diverse, including representatives from various regions of Russia and the CIS, as well as countries of Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. Our MSA students study a wide range of aspects of sport administration, from managing venues, clubs, financial and information flows to developing marketing strategies and using appropriate methodology in research.

RIOU graduates are prepared to work in any field where top class managers are in demand and some of them are already building successful careers in the sports industry.

We hope to welcome you at our University in the future!