Please see the updates listed below regarding the GISST Sports Program in the school year 2023-2024.
Seasons & Sports
The GISST year is organized in three seasons – Fall, Winter and Spring. Sports rotate throughout the school year, with each and every of these seasons being a so-called “regular” one for the particular sports.
- Fall – regular season: Badminton, Cross Country, Football, Varsity Volleyball
- Fall – prep-season: Basketball, U14 Volleyball
- Winter – regular season: Basketball, Table Tennis, U14 Volleyball
- Winter – prep-season: Varsity Volleyball
- Spring – regular season: Table Tennis, Track and Field, U14 Volleyball
- Spring – prep-season: Badminton, Football, Varsity Volleyball
- Swimming program is an exception, which runs in two terms (Sept-Jan / Feb-June), with Term 1 being the regular season, and Term 2 being the prep-season.
GISST Fall Season 2023
The Fall Season 2023 officially starts in the week of September 11. Please see below for particular starting days for each of Fall season sports:
- U14 Boys Football –11 September
- U14 Girls Football – 12 September
- U14 and Varsity Cross Country – 12 September
- Varsity Boys Football – 11 September
- Varsity Girls Football – 12 September
- Varsity Boys Volleyball –12 September
- Varsity Girls Volleyball – 11 September
- Prep-season U14 and Varsity Basketball – 13 September
- Prep-season U14 Volleyball – 15 September
- U14 and Varsity Swimming – 18 September
- U14 and Varsity Badminton – 19 September
- Grade 3-5 Swimming (advanced level) – 22 September
GISST Training Schedule for the upcoming Fall Season is available online and can be found at https://the-fis.de/sports/
Registration
It is a “must” to register your child for participating in the GISST Sports Program. Admission to any training group will only be possible for those students registered beforehand.
The registration will open three times during the school year, always just prior to the upcoming GISST season.
The online registration for the upcoming Fall Season is open from Monday, September 4 at 17:00 until Friday, September 15 at 9:00. To register your child to participate in the GISST Sports Program, please go to the FIS Parent Portal and click on the “Booking Activities” icon. You can sign up your child for any sport offered to his/her grade level this Fall Season.
Availability of spots in any particular sport cannot be guaranteed – the registration takes place according to the principle “first come, first serve”. To avoid disappointment, please complete the registration as soon as possible.
Registration Fee
There is a registration fee that all GISST participants must pay.
The registration fee for the regular season (training 2x/week) is 150 Euro and for any prep season (one training per week) the cost is 50 Euro. This applies to all sports that are offered in the 3-season format.
The swimming program is, however, arranged differently – in only two terms (Sept-Jan / Feb-June). Although the Swimming training is offered only once per week, due to the duration of each particular season, the registration cost for this sport is 150 Euro per person and term.
Prices will be shown on Parent Portal when completing the registration via “Booking Activities”.
This registration fee is applicable to all participating students regardless if they are selected to represent the school at Friendly and/or national-wide GISST tournaments.
You will receive an invoice at the end of the trial period for each sport category that you signed up for.
No fee will be charged in case the participation is canceled within the trial period.
If participation is not canceled during the trial period of the first two training weeks, you will be charged the full registration fee.
Age Categories
The organized tournaments under the auspices of the GISST council are as follows:
UNDER 14
U14 is for students in Grades 5 – 8 who are under the age of 14 on September 1 of that school year.
VARSITY
Varsity is for students in Grades 9 – 12 who are 14 years old or above on September 1 of the school year, and are full-time student at the school.
A student born on September 1 and turning 14 can choose U14 or Varsity.
In addition to U14 and Varsity age categories, we also offer Swimming for Primary students in Grades 3 – 5. This, so-called Interschool, Swimming program is for advanced swimmers only. The FIS does not offer any swimming courses for beginners.
Sometimes, we are also able to offer Cross Country to our younger students, but this is still to be confirmed for the school year 2023-2024.
Primary students can access other non-competitive sporting activities throughout the After School Activity Program.
Training
During the regular season, there are two training sessions per week, and the students are expected to attend both trainings. Therefore, you are kindly asked to register online for both days. Please note that there is no reduction in the registration fee in case your child can only participate in the training once per week.
The prep-season trainings (off the regular season) generally take place only once per week.
Swimming is, once again, an exception with training offered once per week throughout the entire school year.
Trial Period
Upon registration, and in order to allow students to try a particular sport before fully committing to it, we allow for two two-week trial period without any charge. If you would like to cancel your child´s participation within the trial period, please do so by sending an email to
Late cancellations will not be accepted, i.e. you will still be charged the full registration fee.
Competition / Tournament Organization
The GISST aims to provide students from German International Schools with opportunities for participation in quality sporting activities on a competitive basis.
As a part of the regular season, our teams will have an opportunity to join Friendly events in preparation for the final GISST tournaments. These Friendly events usually take place on Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00, both home and away.
The final GISST tournaments are being hosted by various GISST member schools and are, in general, two-day tournaments.
Selection
From all students who attend training, we select a team to represent the FIS at the final tournament. In some cases, and only if absolutely necessary, a pre-selection is being made after the trial period (so-called “try-outs”), and two different level-based training groups are arranged.
Accommodation at GISST Tournaments
All GISST Tournaments that include overnight stays will be hostel/hotel-based.
The accommodation for all participating student-athletes and coaches will be arranged prior to each particular event by the FIS in cooperation with a host school. Whilst the FIS will provide transportation and cover the tournament fees, families of students selected will need to cover accommodation costs themselves. These costs include hostel/hotel accommodation, meals, as well as a bus shuttle from the hostel/hotel to the venue during the tournament.
The accommodation costs are 140 Euro per person for all 2-day tournaments and 70 Euro per person for the tournaments that include a 1-night stay. This is something that will be billed to you via an invoice and to be paid via a bank transfer once received.
There will be no additional costs for participating in Friendly fixtures.
Athletics Assistant
It is with great pleasure to introduce Mr. Kristijan Vidovic, our new Athletics Assistant. New in this role but not new to the FIS, Mr. Vidovic will support the FIS Sports Program this school year in addition to his teaching and coaching commitments. Welcome, Mr. Vidovic!
Coaching Sports Activity at the FIS
The FIS strives to offer students the chance to develop through sports. Participating in a wide variety of sporting activities, students have an opportunity to grow physically, mentally, and socially. Teamwork, dedication, goal setting, and a sense of community are the main components of the FIS / GISST Sports Program. Our coaches all follow the same sports philosophy focused on fair play, individual and team growth, and having fun.
GISST activities are led by both internal and external coaches. Currently, we are looking for additional support in Cross Country, Swimming and Football.
If you are interested in coaching one of the GISST sports as an external coach on a freelance basis, please contact for more details.
Further Information
If you would like any further information or if you have any questions about the GISST program, please get in touch via email.
Mila Fischer / Athletics Director
