Socialist Workers' Sport International

Socialist Workers' Sport International

The Socialist Workers' Sport International was an international socialist sporting organisation. It was based in Lucerne and started in 1920. At first, it was called the International Association for Sports and Physical Culture. It was also known as the Lucerne Sport International. In 1926, it changed its name to Socialist Workers' Sport International, or SASI.

When it began, SASI had six national groups with about one million members. Julius Deutsch, a leader, was its president. The group wanted to help workers with sports and support socialist ideas through activities.

Later, in 1946, a new organisation called the International Labour Sports Federation was made to carry on SASI's work.

Foundation

In 1913, workers from different countries met in Ghent, Belgium to talk about creating a group for sports. But then the First World War started, and they had to stop. After the war, two men from Belgium started planning again. They had meetings in Seraing, Belgium in 1919 and in Paris, France in 1920. Finally, in September 1920, they had a big meeting in Lucerne to officially start the group.

Politics

The Socialist Workers' Sport International tried to stay neutral about political parties. This idea started from the German workers' sports movement, which wanted to avoid fights between different socialist groups. However, communists disagreed, saying workers' sports could not stay out of big political battles.

In 1921, the Communist International decided to create its own sports group, called Sportintern. This new group often criticized the main workers' sports group based in Lucerne. Tensions grew, especially when communist members left some groups.

Later, at meetings, some groups tried to bring the two sports organizations together, but this did not happen. Over time, some members switched sides. Before big sports events, like the Workers Olympiad in 1925, there were arguments about whether certain teams could join. Eventually, the two groups stopped working together and even stopped each other from joining major events.

Workers' Olympiads

The Socialist Workers' Sport International organized special sports events called International Workers' Olympiads. These events were meant to be an alternative to the regular Olympics. They used a special red flag instead of country flags.

The first Workers' Olympiad was in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, in 1925. Many people watched, and some new records were set in races. The second Workers' Olympiad was in Vienna, Austria, in 1931, with more athletes and spectators than the regular Olympics that year. Later events were also held in Austria, Belgium, and plans were made for one in Finland, though it never happened.

Affiliates

The Socialist Workers' Sport International had groups from many countries that worked together. These included the British Workers' Sports Association, Morgnshtern for Jewish people in Poland, the Polish Workers' Sport Federation, Hapoel, the Finnish Workers' Sports Federation, and the Arbeiter-Turn- und Sportbund. Other groups like the Federation Sportive du Travail and groups from Alsace and Lorraine in France were also part of it sometimes.

Membership

By 1931, the Socialist Workers' Sport International reported its membership numbers.