First ever hackathon conducted to create solutions for the Indian Sports Ecosystem
Participants from over 40 cities, 750+ colleges, 15 early stage sports start-ups
10 Lakhs & incubation opportuities given as gratification
India’s fastest growing sports ed-tech start-up Sporjo recently concluded Hack for Sport – a Sports Ecosystem & Gaming Hackathon, which began on April 1st, 2022. One among the path breaking initiatives that Sporjo has undertaken, Hack for Sport is India’s first Hackathon aimed at accelerating growth in the sports industry. The event is a step towards Sporjo’s goal of training half a million sports professionals by 2030.
The Hackathon aimed to bridge the gap – both in terms of knowledge and accessibility between aspiring sports entrepreneurs and growth-focused investors. As the Indian sports industry climbs toward the INR 10,000 crore valuation mark, it’s cumulative growth of 54% over the last decade, has caught the attention of the investor community that want to help grow the industry and be a part of this rapidly growing industry.
Calling for participation from across the country, the Hackthon featured students, young professionals and early stage sports start-ups solving for fourteen segments of the sports industry. These included grassroots development, fan engagement, revenue generation, sports technology, in-stadia experience, infrastructure, gaming, brand association, women in sports, brand and business growth – for both existing and new sports, sports equipment, fitness, and E-sports. The hackathon received 4500 registrations from across 750+ colleges and 15 early stage start-ups from across 40 cities in India. A five-stage selection process over 3 months culminated into a power packed finale on June 19th, 2022.
13 finalist teams submitted their demos for review by a jury of organizers and experts. The jury selected IRIS+ by team Idli Sambhar, an AI powered personal sports trainer application, based on Google’s Mediapipe Pose Detection Library, that allows athletes to not only self train but also receive critical feedback to improve performance. The team was composed of members from Varanasi.
“I enjoyed being a part of the event, which I felt was synonymous with the recent spurt of growth in the sports tech ecosystem. In particular, I was pleasantly surprised by the extent of thinking that was put in to create the prototypes for the ideas presented. Some of the solutions we saw have genuine potential to turn into real businesses, which is exciting. I hope the event becomes an annual fixture and grows in stature and prominence. I look forward to being a part of the same next year as well!” said jury member Mr. Paroksh Gupta, MD, A&W Capital, a platform focused on sports, gaming & digital media.
Said jury member Mr. Kedar Teny, CEO, Lowe Lintas, “Innovation is a force of nature. As humans we are restless and constantly seeking newer and better solutions. In country like ours where most processes are broken, require fixing. The world of sport faces this acutely. We need independent thinkers who can come up with innovative & cost effective solutions supported by platforms that can give them the right stage, and the right opportunities to help scale. I was amazed by both the quantity and the quality of the presentations made by the finalists. Given that this was the first of its kind done in India, the bar has been set high and I can’t wait for the next edition. Events like these push you out of your comfort zone and expose you to ideas that have the potential to change the destiny of Athletes, the infra and the fans. For this the need of the hour is to have well developed platforms like Sporjo’s Sports Hackathon that give a stage to people who want to go out there and make a dent in the universe of sport. Who knows the next unicorn creating value for the troika of athlete, infra and fan could be born out of this stage.”
Mr. G. Srinivvasan, Founder & CEO, Sporjo said, “While the Indian Sports industry has been making rapid strides in the last decade, there are a lot of challenges that still exist. Hack for Sport was created with the aim to address these challenges and help develop the Indian sporting ecosystem through innovative solutions. The idea was not only to reward innovative thinking but also to explore newer technologies while nurturing young talent. Sporjo’s key reason for existence is Sports Education, Employability & Ecosystem development through technology. With Hack for Sport we were able create significant impact and engage with some of the brightest young minds in the country. I look forward to helping these participants grow by giving them all the tools necessary to take their ideas forward.”
The top three sports entrepreneurial ideas walked away with a cash prize of 10 Lakhs along with invaluable access to Sporjo’s curated community of business and growth specialists from both within and outside the Indian sports industry.
About Sporjo
Born of more than twenty years of expertise in the sports industry, Sporjo is a one-stop destination for building a successful career in the Indian sports industry. An education, training & employment-oriented online company in the field of sports, Sporjo was launched on 27th May 2020. Based on the tenet of transforming passion into profession in sports, the company aims to create an ecosystem of half a million professionals to support the Indian sports industry by 2030.
Sporjo is not only a building a new brand but a whole new category geared at Sports education, employment & ecosystem development – (SEED) tech.
Sporjo’s bridges the gap between passionate individuals who want to make a career and prospective employers in the sports industry and also to works towards creating a culture of empowerment – be it parents, children, young or even experienced professionals.
Sporjo is a brand owned by Breathe Careers and Consulting Private Limited.
