According to the Public Relations of the Federation and from the Ministry of Sports and Youth news source, Dr. Ahmad Donyamali, Minister of Sports and Youth, along with Dr. Alireza Kazemi, Minister of Education, held a joint meeting with heads of sports federations on September 6, 2025.
The meeting aimed to increase interaction between the two ministries, share views and concerns, and improve the development of both professional and grassroots sports in schools. To this end, the MOU was signed to pursue student sports activities more seriously.
Dr. Donyamali emphasized the critical role of talent identification and development in schools, describing schools as the primary place where sports talents are discovered. He stated the Ministry of Sports and Youth has a heavy responsibility as the principal authority in this arena, while the Ministry of Education is accountable for nurturing children’s health and development. Although commendable efforts have been made by the Ministry of Education, further cooperation and reinforcement is desired, which this formal MOU aims to support.
The minister also highlighted plans for a tripartite collaboration with the Ministry of Health to address student physical and mental health, stressing that early engagement in national sports camps requires health to be a priority. He noted the societal issue of childhood obesity, emphasizing cross-ministry synergy to promote healthier youth.
Dr. Donyamali noted that Iranian sports should merge closely with school education, utilizing existing resources and manpower effectively. He clarified there is no hierarchy among school sports disciplines, and the successes achieved by students at international competitions are proof of past efforts. He urged ongoing investment today to reap rewards in 5 to 10 years. Recent achievements in under-15 and under-18 global school sports competitions uplift the community, and further federation collaboration with education is targeted to continue these accomplishments.
Minister Alireza Kazemi recalled Iran’s performance in the Gymnasiade World Championships in Serbia, where the Iranian team ranked fifth with 86 medals. He credited the Ministry of Sports’ support for enabling participation and taking advantage of sports federations’ capacities.
Kazemi affirmed sports as a strategic program of the Ministry of Education and indicated quests to establish morning exercise across schools. He invited federations to present tailored plans for their disciplines to be promoted within schools to collectively grow school sports.
He also mentioned plans to admit 3,000 elite students to Farhangian University without exams, a significant portion of whom are athletes, hoping to stimulate school sports further.
During the meeting, the acting head of the Student Sports Federation reported on upcoming Gymnasiade events, underscoring preparations for a strong Iranian student sports delegation. The Gymnasiade is held biennially, with under-18 and under-15 competitions scheduled for 2026 and 2027 respectively. Due to recent governance changes at the International School Sports Federation, exact disciplines and host countries remain to be finalized.
Heads of sports federations voiced concerns including the lack of school competitions, restrictions on talent scout access to schools, and proposed integrating traditional local games in school sports periods, documenting prominent Iranian sports figures in textbooks, introducing polo as a national sport, and installing basketball hoops in all schools.
Minister Kazemi promised to prioritize the inclusion of polo in textbooks, framing it as a national and ceremonial Iranian sport.
The session concluded with the signing of the MOU, focusing on talent identification, student competitions, grassroots sports development, human resources, facilities, and joint education and research efforts as key pillars of cooperation between the two ministries.
