Got an idea for a sports app? Here’s your chance to make it real

Many of us dream of creating an app that makes us rich and famous. Some of us also dream of doing something good for the world. Why not combine the two – by creating an app to get people healthy.

The UK’s first Sports Technology Hackathon takes place over 25 hours on 2-3 October and will bring teams of coders together to design and build an app to “facilitate social change through sport”. 

If you’ve got an idea for a sports app and think you’ve got what it takes to make it reality, you’ll need to assemble a team of up to six people – including at least one woman – and register by September 14. That’s next Monday, for the calendar-phobes among you.

The purpose of the app will be to help one specific social group get healthy – the exact profile of the group will be revealed on the day – and teams will have just 24 hours to come up with a concept and prototype.

The final hour will see the judging panel select the best three ideas, which will then go through to a grand final at the Sports Technology Awards in April 2016. The winner on that day will take away a £10,000 busary from Sport England – together with the acclaim, media attention, affairs with Hollywood royalty and subsequent decline into anti-social behaviour which will inevitably follow. Maybe.  

Sport England’s Director of Business Partnerships Tanya Joseph said, “Sport and technology both have an amazing power to bring together people from different backgrounds. We encourage anyone with any coding or app development skills to get involved.” 

The Hackathon is free to enter and is open to all UK residents over the age of 18. Applications to take part close at 5pm on 14 September 2015 with successful teams having their place on the Hackathon confirmed on 18 September 2016.

To enter, register your interest here and a member of the Sports Technology Hackathon team will be in touch shortly. 

Marc McLaren Contributor

About

Marc was until fairly recently Editor of Stuff.tv, but now edits a site about cars instead. He has been a committed geek since getting a Tomytronic 3D aged seven, and a journalist since the week that Google was founded (really). He spends much of his free time taking photos of really small things (bugs, flowers, his daughters) or really big things (galaxies and the like through a telescope) and losing games of FIFA and Pro Evo online. You can email Marc at marc.mclaren@haymarket.com