A crowd of more than two hundred donned University of Debrecen T-shirts and hopped on their bikes to ride along the festival route on the morning of August 20. Representatives of the faculty and of the former and current student bodies, including several international students, as well as their family members, participated in the parade on bicycles adorned with flowers. For the first time ever, they could also use ride on two-wheelers supplied by UniBike, the recently introduced bike rental service of UD, so even those could join in the fun who do not have wheels of their own.
Following the cyclists, the next attention grabber from the university was a special electric float, the prototype of which had been developed and constructed by the students and instructors at the Faculty of Engineering. Our university had been present at the annual flower fiesta since 2008, so this year, it was already the ninth time it entered a float on its own. As 2016 was marked by two major sports events, UEFA European Football Championship and the Rio Olympic Games; the right choice made jointly with University of Physical Education for the central theme of our current flower composition was obviously sports.
“We have received positive feedback, showing the extraordinary popularity of the float of the University of Debrecen, for which we have earned a memorial certificate. The composition, through which we wished to express the cohesive force inherent in sports, was designed and built by the artist Sándor Pikó,” saidMónika Rőfi, Head of Event Coordination and Alumni Center.
The float was accompanied by almost 100 dancers from Kangaroo Dance Sports Association. For the members of the Association, among whom there are current and future students of the university as well as children of UD staff, this was the first time to take an active part in the parade. The dancers, who were dressed in the Hungarian national colors, performed a spectacular choreography befitting the thematic choice of the university composition.
This year, the University of Debrecen also served as one of the locations identified as program sites during the course of Carnival Week. On August 18th and 19th, Hungarian and foreign dance ensembles performed on Egyetem tér [University Square]. The Main Building “came to life” with the help of five excellent artists qualified in 3D projection mapping, and the August 20th fireworks were also launched from the park in front of the Main Building.
The festive composition on the float of the University of Debrecen was also presented in Nagyerdei Stadion [Big Forest Stadium] on Karnevál Éj [Carnival Night] and then put on display for the general public on August 21 in front of Debrecen’s Town Hall. Do not lose heart though if you happened to miss both these occasions, because it will be exhibited again on September 28, at the first large-scale event of the 2016/2017 academic year, called yoUDay.
Press Office