The Division II National Championships Festival begins this week in Indianapolis, where five winter championships will be conducted through Saturday.
The festival is designed to enhance the student-athlete experience, create more awareness and exposure for Division II sports and increase attendance by having multiple championships in one location. Each festival features opening and closing ceremonies, social opportunities for student-athletes and community engagement events. Student-athletes are housed in centrally located hotels, allowing for an athlete village atmosphere.
Below is a snapshot of the event, including its history.
Festival by the numbers
5 — The festival will feature five championships: men's and women's swimming and diving, men's and women's indoor track and field, and men's wrestling.
86 — The number of individual and relay champions to be crowned. This includes 34 in indoor track and field (15 individual champions and two relay champions for men's and women's), 10 individual champions in wrestling, and 42 champions in swimming and diving (16 individual and five relay champions for men's and women's).
14 — The 2025 festival marks the 14th such event since the inaugural event in 2004 in Orlando, Florida. The festival rotates among fall, winter and spring sports.
1,124 — The approximate number of student-athletes who will compete at the festival, with 564 student-athletes in indoor track and field, 380 in swimming and diving, and 180 in wrestling. A few hundred other school representatives, including support staff, will experience the event as part of each team's allotted travel party.
253 — The number of teams to be represented at the festival, with 108 in indoor track and field, 95 in swimming and diving, and 50 in wrestling. (Note: Schools with teams represented in multiple sports are counted for each championship they are represented in.)
157 — The number of schools that will be represented at the festival. This represents nearly 54% of the 293 active Division II schools in the 2024-25 academic year.
9 — The 2025 festival features the ninth different city to host the event, as Indianapolis joins Orlando; Pensacola, Florida; Houston; Louisville, Kentucky; Birmingham, Alabama; Denver; Pittsburgh; and Seattle.
550 — The approximate number of volunteers who will help put on the festival.
Learn more about DII Winter Championships Festival
