Skillnet Innovation Exchange announced a collaboration with Sport Ireland to support the digital transformation of sport in Ireland. Through its Digital for Sport initiative, Skillnet Innovation Exchange will invite technology solutions providers to pitch to, and collaborate with, sports organisations across Ireland looking to harness the power of digital technology to increase efficiencies and performance.

The collaboration was announced at the inaugural Sport and Innovation Technology Summit held at the Sport Ireland Campus where Skillnet Innovation Exchange called on digital solutions providers to explore how their solutions can be applied to the world of sports management and performance. The initiative is expected to achieve improved digital adoption across the Irish sports ecosystem, including streamlining administrative processes, optimising data management and communications and improving the understanding of participants performance and experience.

Skillnet Innovation Exchange is Ireland’s innovation marketplace, connecting organisations facing digital transformation challenges with technology companies that can fast-track the solutions. Since its inception two years ago, 30 challenges have been published by Skillnet Innovation Exchange for companies with a digital challenge and 10 deals have been done between companies facing a challenge and companies with the ability to solve them.

Skillnet Innovation Exchange is an initiative of Skillnet Ireland, the business support agency of Ireland that is responsible for advancing the competitiveness of businesses through providing skills programmes. Sport Ireland is the authority responsible for the development of sport in Ireland working with the 60 governing bodies of sport and a network of 29 Local Sports Partnerships.

Minister of State for Sport and Physical Education, Thomas Byrne TD, commented, “innovation and collaboration are core values of the Government’s National Sports Policy, so I am delighted to see this new partnership taking place between the Innovation Exchange and Sport Ireland, which will support the digital transformation of the Irish sports sector. Technology has an impact on most aspects of our lives and so I want to commend all of the sports organisations, researchers and enterprises who came together today at the Sport Innovation and Technology Summit, to explore what role technology will play in shaping the future of sport in Ireland.”

Speaking at the launch, Conor Carmody, Programme Director at Skillnet Innovation Exchange commented, “this new collaboration between Sport Ireland and Skillnet Innovation Exchange will offer many SMEs the opportunity to collaborate with sporting organisations across Ireland, bridging the innovation divide and strengthening the Irish sport ecosystem. With today’s announcement we are thrilled to expand our offering and look forward to seeing the challenges and solutions develop in the next few years.”

Benny Cullen, Director of Research and Innovation at Sport Ireland said, “the recently launched Sport Ireland strategy aims to drive innovation through creative collaborations across the sports sector and the promotion of a digital first approach. This new partnership with Skillnet Innovation Exchange will help Irish sport to deliver on these ambitions. This initiative will provide tailored supports to the Irish sport sector and Irish enterprise to help foster new partnerships and develop innovative digital solutions in sport.”

Source: Sport Ireland