site.btaAugust 25, 1961: Sofia Hosts First World Student Summer Games in Bulgaria, Universiada Hall Opened

On 25 August, 1961, Universiada Hall was opened in Sofia. It was built with the voluntary work of 20,000 students, designed by architects Aleksander Barov, Ivan Tatarov, Ivan Ivanchev and others. Its name is connected with Sofia's hosting of the Summer Universiade [currently known as FISU World University Games]. This was the first Universiade in Bulgaria and the second in the history of the competition.

The Universiade is an international sports competition for university students organized by the International University Sports Federation. There are Summer and Winter Universiades, the first being held in 1959 in Turin, Italy. The second Universiade was held in Bulgaria in 1961. 

A total of four Universiades have been held in Bulgaria - two Summer (1961 and 1977) and two Winter (1983 and 1989), all of them in Sofia.