At a recent meeting between Minister of Youth and Sports Farid Gayibov and representatives of national sports federations, held at the Azerbaijan Sports Academy, significant attention was given to the Azerfit project.
As reported by Idman.Biz, although it has been covered unfairly little in local media, the project is highly likely to change the approach to athlete preparation in Azerbaijan in the foreseeable future.
The idea behind the project appears to be an attempt to move sports development onto a measurable and manageable digital foundation, where decisions are made not only based on intuition and traditional reports, but on systematic data. In the public agenda, Azerfit is increasingly mentioned alongside AI, as well as physical and psychological training plans presented at the meeting by invited experts Edward Kolar, Rado Pisot, Matej Tusak and Tomaz Levak.
From a technical standpoint, Azerfit relies on a broader architecture described in international materials as the creation of a trusted national AI platform for sports data. The Ministry of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan, together with the Sports Academy and partner organizations, is launching an infrastructure that will begin with the digitization and categorization of every registered athlete, as well as the mapping, a unified digital map, of the country’s sports infrastructure.
This foundation is intended to support the Azerfit program and create a secure, compatible database for the entire sports ecosystem, enabling the future integration of advanced analytics and AI tools.
An important nuance is that the platform will ensure verifiable data provenance and the reliability of AI-generated insights. The governance aspect is also emphasized, as once deployed, the system is expected to be fully owned and managed by the ministry. The concept of this platform was presented at one of the international профиль forums in Ljubljana.
At the same time, Azerfit is not limited to building a large database. The project also has a practical dimension related to measuring physical fitness through standardized tests and clear reports. A key role here is played by FitBack Europe. The Azerbaijan Sports Academy previously reported on a training session dedicated to a trusted AI platform for sports data, noting that participants had undergone training in developing Azerfit based on the FitBack Europe platform.
This essentially serves as a digital tool for fitness monitoring among children and adolescents. The system allows the creation of interactive reports based on entered test results, providing normative assessments and health-related analysis. The reports include health risk evaluations and comparative interpretations based on European data. FitBack methodological materials list tests suitable for mass monitoring, including the 20-meter shuttle run, standing long jump, handgrip strength, and basic anthropometric parameters such as height, weight and waist circumference.
The practical logic of FitBack is straightforward: test results are entered into an online form, after which an individual report is generated. Group reports can also be created if needed, which is convenient for schools, sports sections and mass sports programs. The principle of privacy is emphasized, as data is not stored in the system, used only to generate the report and then deleted, with no personal information retained.
In terms of content, this gives Azerfit a strong applied component. While the national AI platform is responsible for unified athlete registration, infrastructure tracking and the accumulation of trusted data, the FitBack approach addresses regular physical fitness testing and clear feedback.
Overall, the project appears to be an attempt to build a unified digital system that will be useful both for mass physical education and for elite athlete preparation, creating a basis for more accurate load planning, performance monitoring and results analytics at the national level.
Official timelines for the full implementation of Azerfit have not yet been specified in open sources. However, it is already clear that in 2025 the project moved from concept to practical training and technology testing, and in 2026, as shown by the recent meeting between Minister Farid Gayibov and federation representatives, AI and Azerfit have become part of the regular state sports agenda.
Teymur Tushiyev
