Harvard Business School Joins 2013 MBA Olympics

by Stacy Blackman Consulting, May 4, 2013

Harvard Business School is to become the first US institution to take part in next months MBA Tournament (MBAT), the annual business school Olympics which takes place at HEC Paris.

The MBAT started with six participating business schools in 1991, and is set against the backdrop of HEC Paris's 300-acre wooded campus. This year, a Harvard football team will compete with 14 top European business schools as part of the three-day sporting competition which will involve over 1,500 MBA students of 70 nationalities.

Sporting events range from rowing and basketball to chess and tug-of-war. This 23rd edition, which will take place from May 9-12th, will also include salsa dancing, karting and poker.

Hosted andorganizedby HEC Pariss MBA students, the MBAT provides business school students with the chance to network with other students and alumni from across the globe, develop their team-working abilities and, of course, take home a little sporting glory. There are also themed evening events such as a casino night, and a mini Woodstock to give competitors the opportunity to unwind and make new friends.

"We're thrilled to welcome Harvard Business School students to this year's tournament," says MBAT co-organizerEmilie Flanagan. "The MBAT is thelargest gathering of MBA students at a single event in Europe, and as Harvard's involvement confirms, its popularity continues to grow".

Participating schools include:

• University of Cambridge Judge Business School
• Cranfield University School of Management
• Harvard Business School
• IE Business School
• INSEAD
• London Business School
• Manchester Business School
• University of Oxford Said Business School
• RSM Erasmus University
• TiasNimbas Business School
• ESADE Business School
• IESE Business School
• Lancaster University Management School
• HEC Paris

For the organizers, creating the event has been a valuable experience. Flanagan says, Working on a project like the MBAT has been a lesson to us all in building effective leadership skills, time management and strategy, as weve had to work as a team communicating with people all around the world as well as being faced with the challenge of putting this event together alongside our studies. Its been a challenging but rewarding experience, and Im looking forward to seeing the event come together in a few weeks time.

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