As the end of the spring semester fast approaches, it is safe to say everyone is swamped with work. However, one group of students has an additional commitment on top of all their academic responsibilities—the Comité d’Organisation des Collégiades. Pawel Bolek, Managing Editor of The Sundial Press, interviewed two members of the Committee about their work and what to expect from this edition of the annual intercampus Minicrit, the inter-campus arts and sports competition.
Pawel: Would you like to introduce yourselves and the event itself?
Garance: Hi! So I’m Garance and I’m part of the comms team.
Gabin: Hey, I’m Gabin and I am currently treasurer of the event! So this year, the Collégiades are running from May 19 to 21. It’s the biggest event of the year for all the Sciences Po campuses and attracts around 1,000 participants.
Garance: Exactly, it’s essentially like a reunion of the WEIC and WEIMART, but all put together.
In one sentence, why should we care about the Collégiades?
Garance: Because it’s promoting sports, shared values, self expression, arts, and fair play.
What is the main idea behind the Collégiades?
Gabin: Well, as Reims, the other campuses hate us… Just kidding! The Collégiades were born out of the attempt to find something that unites all campuses. Usually, we don’t share that much aside from MUNs, so it was important to have an event that unites students from all of the campuses.
And tell me a little more about where the name of the event comes from! It seems like there are many different ways of referring to it.
Garance: The CRIT was the name of the annual tournament that would unite all the Sciences Po Paris and IEP campuses!
Ah, so that would be the 7 Sciences Po Paris campuses and the IEP de Province like Rennes, Lyon…
Garance: Yes, exactly. That doesn’t exist anymore.
Gabin: That’s why we sometimes refer to the current event as the MiniCRIT—it’s like the mini version of the previous CRIT since it doesn’t include the other IEPs anymore. And then the “Collégiades” comes from “Collège Universitaire.” That’s the name used by admin and is more official.
What makes this year’s edition special?
Garance: Well, this year it’s us, Reims, who’s organizing! The Paris admin wanted to change the way it’s organized—before there was only the COC—Comité d’Organisation des Collégiades. There is now an executive bureau with one representative from each campus, who all get to vote at the General Assembly. Plus, in terms of sports, there is a really strict separation between EURAM and EURAF.
Pawel: What kinds of competitions can students expect?
Gabin: Rugby, football, volleyball, basketball, dodgeball—which we call “balle aux prisonniers”. It’s like dodgeball but with French PE class vibes.
Garance: And then there’s a big arts section: fashion, poetry, cinema, singing, dance, visual arts, photography… and this year’s mystery art is rap!
Pawel: What about the prizes?
Gabin: There’s the big campus trophy for whoever performs best overall in arts and sports. And then there’s the supporters’ trophy for the campus with the most hype, and the most respectful, and most spirited crowd.
Pawel: Tell me about the mascot situation.
Garance: We got a giant Idéfix teddy bear! It’s themed around Astérix and Obélix to go with our Ancient Greece aesthetic. You might also see students in togas…
Gabin: Don’t forget AB and UV! They have their own mascots too. The elephant and the beaver are icons.
Pawel: And how would you describe the organizational experience in a meme?
Gabin: That guy walking into a burning room holding pizza. That’s us. Every day brings a new fire to put out.
Pawel: How long have you been working on this?
Garance: Since last summer. I joined in December, but some of the team have been planning since May 2024.
Gabin: I got in with the first round of applications. We meet every Sunday, deal with logistics, budgets, communication… everything.
Pawel: Is there anything that you’re stressed about?
Gabin: Protection civile—we’re struggling to find enough first aid volunteers. Last year in Dijon, they lost their team just before the event. We don’t want a repeat of that.
What are you guys looking forward to the most?
Garance: The parties! They’re gonna be so fun and I’m looking forward to greeting the other campuses.
Gabin: Yes, that’s the most exciting, welcoming the people from the other campuses on May 18. When they get to Reims on their buses, we will greet them and try to get the hype up!
Grance: Yes, it’s going to be a really happy moment.
As an organizer, are you allowed to participate yourself?
Gabin: Yes, I’m doing rugby—no bias though!
Any Sundial tea for us?
Gabin: As the Committee, we are perfectly neutral and we are here for everyone. However, speaking as a rugby player, we are privately not the biggest fans of Nancy and Paris…
To finish off: any “delulu” dreams?
Garance: EURAF winning!
Gabin: EURAM winning! In reality, Nancy has won a lot of times…
Garance: And Reims is not known to be amazing with art.
However, the fact that this year’s edition is in Reims is really motivating our campus. And we’re gonna cook something up this May!
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