Eligibility to participate
All students and employees of the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) are eligible to participate in KIT's university sports program. The following groups are eligible to participate for the cooperating institutions:
- Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University Karlsruhe (DHBW) - students only
- Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (HKA) - students only
- Karlsruhe University of Music (HfM) - students only
- Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design (HfG) - students only
- Karlshochschule International University (KHS) - students only
- Kunstakademie - State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe (SABAK) - students only
- Research Center for Information Technology (FZI) - employees
- National Institute for Science Communication (NaWik) - employees
The Karlsruhe University of Education (PH) is only a cooperation partner in the area of adh competition events (DHM, Open, Trophy, EUC). Registration for these events takes place via the department head of the respective sport and the University Sports Department. Students and employees of the PH are not eligible to participate in any other university sports activities.
Important: Only enrolled students and employees with a current employment contract are eligible to participate in university sports courses. Students who are already exmatriculated are no longer eligible to participate in university sports courses.
Eligibility to participate must be proven by successful registration in the booking portal and proof of booking and student/employee ID in the university sports department. These requirements will be checked by the university sports administration, the sports instructors and the janitor team. To check eligibility to participate, student/employee IDs and proof of booking must always be carried and presented on request.
Fees
The HSP Sportpass (formerly the semester base fee) is charged at a flat rate per semester for each participant in university sports. The HSP Sportpass must be purchased each semester; it is a prerequisite for ALL other bookings (with the exception of the walk-in health center). The purchase of this pass is not a guarantee of obtaining the desired course place. A refund of the purchase amount is not (!) possible.
Depending on the course chosen, additional course fees may apply. The fees are collected by direct debit from the participant's specified account in a regular cycle. The payment status can be checked at any time via online registration.
In the event of returned direct debits, processing fees of 3 euros per booking transaction will be charged, plus the processing fees of the credit institution that rejected the direct debit.
Registration
Registration is only possible online via the university sports booking portal. Detailed information on the offers can be found on the University Sports website. Bookings result in an obligation to pay regardless of whether the offers are actually taken up. By confirming the online registration, University Sports is authorized to collect the course fees by direct debit from the participant's account. By registering, eligible participants accept the conditions of participation and the data protection regulations of University Sports.
walk-in | Center for Fitness, Health and Diagnostics
For access to our health center "walk-in" and the associated offers, interested parties should contact the "walk-in" directly - walk-in∂ifss.kit.edu
Miscellaneous
For tournaments, competitions and special events, special booking and cancellation conditions usually apply, which will be announced in each case.
Course raffle
From the winter semester 2025/2026, there will be a course raffle procedure for university sports courses, which should enable all participants to be allocated course places as fairly as possible. The courses that are included in the course raffle procedure are marked accordingly in the booking system. In the course raffle procedure, eligible participants can register for up to three courses (which participate in the raffle procedure) and rate them with priorities 1 (highest priority), 2 (medium priority) and 3 (lowest priority). After the end of registration, the course places are drawn and must be actively confirmed by the eligible participants in the booking portal within the acceptance period. All other courses can be booked without a raffle procedure. The course raffle procedure is outlined here in brief:
General timeline (relative to course start/start of lectures t = 0)
- Start of registration phase for course places: Beginning of April (summer semester) or beginning of October (winter semester)
- End of registration phase course places: t = - 6 days, 11:59 pm
- Start of raffle period: t = - 5 days, 10:00 a.m.
- Acceptance period for course places: 23 hours per place offered
- Course raffle is repeated daily at 10:00 a.m. with remaining places per course until the end of the raffle period, if necessary
- End of raffle period: t = - 1 day, 11:59 p.m.
- Course start/lecture start: t = 0
Note: The current dates are explicitly published again before each semester via the University Sports communication platforms.
Data protection regulations
By registering for a university sports program, the participant accepts the data protection regulations of university sports. Further information on the data protection regulations: https://www.ifss.kit.edu/hochschulsport/datenschutz.php
Withdrawal/cancellation
Withdrawal from university sports courses is generally possible. Withdrawal must be communicated by email to sportreferat∂ifss.kit.edu. The following withdrawal conditions apply:
- Within the first three weeks after the official start of university sports in the respective semester (not the first day of the booked course) there are no cancellation costs and the fees will be refunded 100%. For registration for vacation courses after the lecture period, a cancellation period of 14 days from the start of the vacation course applies.
- No refunds will be made for later withdrawals.
- The HSP Sport pass (formerly semester base fee) is charged at a flat rate per semester for each participant in the university sports program. The HSP Sportpass must be purchased each semester; it is a prerequisite for ALL other bookings (with the exception of the walk-in health center). The purchase of this pass is not a guarantee to get the desired course place. A refund of the purchase amount is not (!) possible.
- For specific cancellation rules, especially for PlayNow offers, please refer to the respective offers in the University Sports booking portal.
The participation fees paid will be transferred to an account to be named by the person withdrawing. Cash payment is not possible. The university sports management may allow exceptions to this in special exceptional cases, which must be justified in writing (e.g. incapacity for sport, proven by a medical certificate).
In the event of repeated unexcused absences of individual participants, the respective course management may cancel the course. Cancellations of this kind do not entail any refund of fees for the participants.
Scope of services
The respective duration of the courses is indicated on the university sports homepage and in the university sports booking portal. However, courses may be canceled if
- the course day falls on a public holiday or during a lecture-free period (e.g. Christmas and summer closures),
- there is force majeure,
- German university championships or other major events require the respective hall time,
- unavoidable disruptions to operations such as construction work, repairs or similar occur,
- a course leader is unable to attend and the University Sports Administration is unable to find a qualified replacement at short notice,
- offers in municipal or other sports facilities whose operating times are linked to school vacations may have different running times.
In the case of outdoor courses, participants are not entitled to a refund if course dates are canceled due to adverse weather conditions. Participants are responsible for complying with passport and customs regulations for courses abroad
Cancellation of courses by the university sports department
University Sports can combine courses or cancel them completely if, for example, the minimum number of participants is not reached. Participants who have already paid the fee at the time of the cancellation or change can attend another course of their choice within the same fee group in the current program, subject to available places. It is also possible for the participants concerned to withdraw from booked courses if they do not take place. Course fees already paid will then be refunded, but there is no further entitlement.
Sportswear
The sports halls may only be entered with clean, non-traffic sports shoes with abrasion-resistant soles. The sports shoes must be suitable for the type of sport. This rule applies to all sports courses in halls and on grass or artificial turf pitches. Shoes for clay courts (no protruding tread) are compulsory on tennis courts. Further regulations for sports clothing for special sports (e.g. sailing) may be issued; these will be brought to the attention of participants in a suitable form when they register.
Hall supervision
Insurance cover
The following information relates to the statutory accident insurance cover for duly registered university sports participants.
Statutory accident insurance cover applies to all official university sports events:
- for all sports courses (with a trainer) in accordance with the semester program,
- for internal and external special university sports events (e.g. courses, seminars, excursions, other official course units),
- at internal and external competitive sports events (only applies to enrolled students!*), provided they are registered and organized by University Sports
- as well as on the associated routes (including abroad, the choice of means of transportation is optional)
* Students who are already exmatriculated are no longer entitled to participate in university sports courses. When participating in adh events (still possible 1 year after successful graduation), they are no longer covered by accident insurance through the Unfallkasse BW, as they no longer belong to the respective university. In this case, the adh does NOT have a separate regulation or the possibility of separate supplementary accident insurance for competitions.
Not insured:
- Participation in events at other universities (with the exception of cross-university, joint events of several universities such as competitive sports events and training courses)
- Sports activities on the university campus without organizational integration into the official university sports program or without an exercise leader contractually bound to university sports
- Participation in competitions without registration via University Sports
- Private interruptions of the routes to the place of the university sports activity or back home (e.g. shopping, regulars' table) as well as detours for private reasons
KIT employees are insured according to the principles of company sports. Accordingly, the sporting activity must be suitable to compensate for the physical strain caused by the job, take place with a certain regularity and be related to the company work in accordance with the compensatory purpose. Events with a competitive character and excursions are excluded from this. For civil servants, an accident in the context of their participation in university sports is not considered an occupational accident. Employees must observe the applicable regulations of their institution when reporting accidents.
Participants in independent sports groups without HSP instructors are not covered by accident insurance.
Participants in courses offered by other organizers, which are only arranged by University Sports, are responsible for their own insurance cover. It is therefore advisable to take out accident, health and, if necessary, travel cancellation and baggage insurance.
Accidents must be reported immediately to the relevant departments of the cooperation institutions and to the HSP.
As a matter of principle, all participants and course leaders of university sports are recommended to take out private liability insurance to obtain insurance cover in the event that personal injury or property damage is caused to third parties while practicing sports.
Insurance cover - supplement
In principle, the following two groups of insured persons are eligible for insurance cover from the UKBW.
- As a student
- As an employee
Insured group of persons:
Re 1: The following three conditions must be met in order for "students" to be covered by statutory accident insurance:
- Students must be admitted by the university (enrollment) and
- the activity causing the accident must be study-related and
- the activity must be within the organizational responsibility of the university.
Re 2: Persons who have concluded a (salaried) employment contract with KIT are covered by statutory accident insurance via the UKBW for "company activities" or "company sports" (see "insured activities" below). Persons who are self-employed (fee-based work) or civil servants, for example, are not insured.
For certain groups of people, it must always be checked on a case-by-case basis whether they belong to the insured group, e.g.
- Guest lecturers: If there is an employment relationship with the KIT, there is insurance cover for operational activities. If you are self-employed or a civil servant, there is no insurance cover via the UKBW.
- Erasmus students: All three requirements of the "student" must be met (in particular enrollment at KIT).
- Doctoral students: If the doctoral candidate is enrolled at KIT, then insurance cover as a "student" is possible. If there is an employment relationship with KIT, then insurance cover as an "employee" is possible. If neither is the case, there is no statutory accident insurance cover.
- Auxiliary: The basis is an employment relationship with KIT. Consequently, insurance cover as an "employee" is possible.
Insured activity:
Re 1: Enrolled "students" are covered by statutory accident insurance if they are involved in official university sports within the organizational area of responsibility of the university. The organizational area of responsibility of the university exists if the university
- organizes
- supervises (e.g. with regard to time, place) and
- accompanies (supervision on site or supervision by cooperation partners)
Re 2: "Employees" are insured for sport if they are either credited with "working time" for it or if it is "company sport" for the employees.
Property damage/theft
Liability
University Sports is only liable if damage was caused intentionally or through gross negligence by an employee.
Participation in excursions and other group events is at your own risk. For all courses not organized by the University Sports Department itself, the University Sports Department only acts as an intermediary. Accordingly, University Sports accepts no liability for any damage, accidents, losses or delays on the part of the passenger and transportation companies involved. Travel to external courses in your own car is at your own risk. University Sports also accepts no liability for theft, damage or loss of luggage. Sports equipment is also taken along at your own risk. The respective organizers of the courses are named in the announcements.