QUT Students Reimagine the Future of Sport
On Tuesday 4 June, Innovation Central Brisbane and QUT Sport hosted the final showcase of the 2025 Semester 1 ProtoComp: QUT Sport Innovation – a program designed to equip students with real-world skills, digital tools, and industry connections while addressing some of the most pressing challenges in sport.
Held at Innovation Central Brisbane, the event marked the culmination of a 12-week journey that began with a high-energy Hackathon and progressed through a mentoring-supported build phase, where four student teams developed working digital prototypes.
Framed by a Powerful Provocation
At the centre of this semester’s ProtoComp was a bold challenge, delivered by Olympian and QUT Director of Sport, Emily Rosemond:
How might we create a smarter, more inclusive, and sustainable sporting experience that enhances performance, event operations, and spectator engagement while ensuring lasting regional impact?
Students from all six QUT faculties formed interdisciplinary teams and spent a weekend generating and pitching concepts. Nine teams competed, and four were selected to progress into ProtoBuild, receiving funding, mentoring, and technical support to develop their prototypes.
Prototype Presentations
At the Showcase, the four finalist teams presented their solutions to a room of academics, industry partners, and sport innovation leaders. Each project addressed a unique opportunity within the sport sector:
SportLink
A youth-focused digital platform that connects young people with volunteer opportunities at local sporting events. In return for their time, volunteers earn reward points that can be redeemed for event tickets, public transport, or sport registration fees – helping to reduce financial barriers and strengthen community participation in grassroots sport.
SportLink stands out by combining gamified incentives with a personalised experience. It aims to make volunteering more attractive, accessible, and socially meaningful – especially for young people from low socio-economic backgrounds. The team is currently developing an automated resume generator and MVP website, with plans to trial the platform with local clubs and sporting organisations.
RYME
An affordable and portable timing system designed to make athletics events more efficient and accessible for schools and grassroots clubs. RYME’s smart sensors and lightweight design aim to reduce dependence on expensive equipment and large volunteer teams, a common challenge for community sport organisers.
Built for scalability, the system is tailored for events with minimal resources and maximum enthusiasm. RYME allows small teams to run track events with ease, boosting inclusivity and participation in local sport. The team’s next steps include refining sensor accuracy, expanding wireless capability, and piloting the system with school partners.
Endeavour
A gamified mobile app designed to help young people (ages 16–19) build real-world friendships and reconnect through sport. Using interactive mini-games and playful matchmaking, the app eases social anxiety, boosts confidence, and encourages users to move from online bonding to offline activity.
Endeavour uniquely blends elements of gaming, social networking, and sport meetup platforms – offering a safe, engaging space for teens to find like-minded people, set shared goals, and participate in community-based sporting activities. Looking ahead, the team plans to explore real-name verification, secure data features using Web 3.0, and potential integration with AR/VR.
ReVRlution
A sport wheelchair simulator console with VR integration, designed to replicate the feel and movement of real sports wheelchairs. Using motion sensors and a VR headset, the system creates an immersive training and gameplay experience for users as they navigate a virtual environment.
Compact, portable, and cost-effective, ReVRlution aims to reduce the barriers to wheelchair sport participation by offering a scalable solution for training, education, and entertainment. With applications across health, sport, and inclusion, it offers a more accessible alternative to high-cost specialist equipment – opening up opportunities for individuals who might otherwise be excluded.
Real-World Engagement
The Showcase welcomed a broad audience of guests from across the sector – including representatives from the Australian Sports Commission, Queensland Government, Tennis Australia, Hockey Queensland, Brisbane Bullets, Little Athletics Queensland, and Squash Queensland.
This diverse industry engagement reflects the growing appetite for innovation across the sport landscape, particularly as Queensland prepares for Brisbane 2032 and the long-term legacy opportunities that come with it.
Celebrating Student Innovation
Delivered by Innovation Central Brisbane in partnership with QUT Sport, the ProtoComp is more than just a program – it’s a platform. One that connects student passion with real-world challenges and supports students to develop solutions that are technically sound, socially relevant, and commercially aware.
The Showcase closed the loop on a program built on cross-sector collaboration, digital capability-building, and student potential. But more than that, it opened the door to what’s next.
For future partners, students, and sport leaders: we’re just getting started.
Thank You!
The 2025 Sport Innovation ProtoComp brought together the curiosity and creativity of QUT students with the experience and insights of industry mentors to explore the future of sport. Over 12 weeks, students embraced real-world challenges and worked side-by-side with experts across the sport sector to develop meaningful digital solutions.
We’re incredibly grateful to the many industry professionals who generously contributed their time, ideas, and encouragement throughout the Hackathon, ProtoBuild, and weekly mentoring sessions. Your support made a lasting impact.
A special acknowledgement to Peter Laurie, whose engaging mentorship session inspired fresh thinking and energised the cohort during the Hackathon. We also extend our thanks to Richard McInnes from the Australian Sports Commission, who joined our judging panel and offered invaluable insights to the student teams. To Terry Weber (QLD Regional Manager, Cisco) and Chris Davis (Little Athletics QLD) and many others for their involvement throughout the program, your guidance and mentorship helped shape the student experience from concept to prototype.
We are especially grateful to our program partner, QUT Sport, for their ongoing collaboration and leadership in making this program possible. Their support continues to create powerful opportunities for students to innovate, connect, and grow in the lead-up to Brisbane 2032.
Finally, thank you to our founding partner Cisco for their continued support of Innovation Central Brisbane.
Read the full program overview
