The Islamic Solidarity Games ( ar, ألعاب التضامن الإسلامي) is a multinational,
multi-sport event
A multi-sport event is an organized sporting event, often held over multiple days, featuring competition in many different sports among organized teams of athletes from (mostly) nation-states. The first major, modern, multi-sport event of interna ...
. The Games involve the elite athletes of the
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.
The word is derived from ...
who compete in a variety of sports. The Solidarity Games were initially created to strengthen Islamic camaraderie and reinforce the values of Islam, primarily to the youth.
The
Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation
The Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation (ISSF; Arabic: الاتحاد الرياضي للتضامن الاسلامي) is the supreme authority governing the Islamic Solidarity Games. It is an international, non-profit, non-governmental organizati ...
(ISSF) and the
Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is the organization that is responsible for the direction and control of the Islamic Solidarity Games. The ISSF strives to improve Islamic solidarity, promote Islamic identity in sports and help reduce discrimination toward Muslims.
History
The original idea for the Solidarity Games comes from
Prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz, during the Third Islamic Summit in 1981.
The first Solidarity games was held in 2005 in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
and there are currently 57 members of the
Organisation of the Islamic Conference
An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.
The word is derived from ...
. In 2005, the games were male-only with 7,000 athletes from fifty-four countries competing in thirteen different sports.
Females are now allowed to participate in the games but compete on different days than men. Non-Muslim citizens in the member countries are also allowed to take part in the Games. It was said to have the most participants for a sporting event aside from the
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...
.
A second event, originally scheduled to take place in October 2009 in
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, and later rescheduled for April 2010, was canceled after a dispute arose between Iran and the
Arab World
The Arab world ( ar, اَلْعَالَمُ الْعَرَبِيُّ '), formally the Arab homeland ( '), also known as the Arab nation ( '), the Arabsphere, or the Arab states, refers to a vast group of countries, mainly located in Western A ...
over the use of the term
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bo ...
in logos for the Games, as some countries in the Arab world use the term "Arabian Gulf" instead.
Dispute over the name has been a recurring source of disharmony between Arab states and Iran. The latest edition took place in
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world an ...
, on 12–22 May 2017.
With the level of political fragmentation, the deficiencies in economic development in many Muslim countries, and the financial cost of the Islamic Solidarity games, the longevity of the games will be a big challenge.
The
2021 Islamic Solidarity Games
The 2021 Islamic Solidarity Games ( tr, 2021 İslami Dayanışma Oyunları) were the 5th edition of the event held from 9 to 18 August 2022 at Konya, Turkey under the aegis of Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation (ISSF). It was the first time ...
were the 5th edition of the event. It was the first time that the event was organised by the
Turkish Olympic Committee
Turkish National Olympic Committee (TNOC) ( tr, Türkiye Milli Olimpiyat Komitesi (TMOK)) is the governing Olympic body of Turkey. It is based in Istanbul.
History
As one of the oldest National Olympic Committees in the world, TNOC was founded o ...
. Scheduled to take place in 2021, the event was postponed to be held in 2022, because the original dates were coinciding with the
2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
, which were postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
.
The
2025 Islamic Solidarity Games
5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. It has attained significance throughout history in part because typical humans have five digits on ...
will be the first ever not to be hosted in a Muslim majority country. The elected host city,
Yaoundé
Yaoundé (; , ) is the capital of Cameroon and, with a population of more than 2.8 million, the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region of the nation at an elevation of about 750 metres (2,50 ...
, is the capital of
Cameroon
Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the ...
, where the Christian population exceeds 70% of the population, while around 25% is Muslim. Cameroon is a member of the
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.
The word is derived from ...
.
Editions
Sports
28 sports have been presented in the Islamic Solidarity Games.
Medal count
See also
*
Islamic Games
The Islamic Games ( ar, الألعاب الإسلامية, tr, Islam Ülkeleri Spor Oyunlari) was a multi-sport event for athletes from Muslim countries that was held from 26 September to 6 October 1980 in İzmir, Turkey. Although 42 nations wer ...
*
Women's Islamic Games
*
Maccabiah Games
The Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the World Maccabiah Games; he, משחקי המכביה, or משחקי המכביה העולמית; sometimes referred to as the "Jewish Olympics"), first held in 1932, are an international Jewish and Israeli multi- ...
References
External links
*
{{International multi-sport events
Multi-sport events
Recurring sporting events established in 2005