The RIOU was founded by the Ministry of Sports, the Russian Olympic Committee and the Interros Group in 2009 and focuses on training highly qualified sports managers for the Russian and international sports industry, and the Olympic and Paralympic movement. The RIOU campus can accommodate up to 500 students.
Vladimir Putin heads the University’s Board of Trustees, and Honorary President of the Russian Olympic Committee and member of the International Olympic Committee Alexander Zhukov leads the Supervisory Board.
Escorted by RIOU Rector Lev Belousov, Vladimir Putin toured the premises of the university and was briefed about its operation. In particular, the President visited the OVAL (Olympic Virtual Athletic Land) interactive information and education centre, which combines multimedia technology with unique exhibits from the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Lev Belousov informed the President that the OVAL concept was designed to popularise and position sports as a branch of knowledge and high technology by way of creating an interactive space which promotes winter sports and covers the history of the Olympic Games. The President was also shown an interactive book, The Olympic Movement: History and Present and River of Time – a projection video about the history of the Olympic Games from antiquity up to the present day.
Vladimir Putin also toured three-dimensional simulators for practicing individual sports. One of them is a two-man bobsled imitating descent down a bobsleigh track. Other simulators presented in the gym imitate a ski and snowboard run down the Roza Khutor Olympic track. In addition to this, the President was shown a biathlon simulator at the Laura ski complex track.
During his visit to the University, Vladimir Putin spoke with members of the Russian Paralympic team and took part in a meeting dedicated to the 10th RIOU anniversary.