GSUN '25 Summit Kicks Off in Brisbane
GSUN '25 Summit welcome message from World Athletics President Lord Sebastian Coe.
GSUN '25 Summit Kicks Off in Brisbane
After a fantastic welcome to country by Refti Tovi from Turrbal Dippil, the GSUN '25 Summit, hosted by the University of Queensland, kicked off this morning in Brisbane, Australia with an opening plenary Game On! How Sports, Universities, Government, and Industry Can Team Up to Build a Winning Future. Sports Journalist and Broadcaster Tracey Holmesmoderated an inspiring discussion with Mark Arbib, CEO Australian Olympic Committee; Matti Clements, Director, Australian Institute of Sport; Doug Ferguson, NSW Chairman, Head of Sport, Head of Asia & International Markets, KPG Australia; Finbarr Kirwan, Senior Vice President, Chief of Olympic Sport, United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee; and Patrick Johnson OLY, Dual Olympian for Australia, Culture and Safety Advisor, Sport Integrity Australia.
Following remarks from University of Queensland Vice-Chancellor Deborah Terry, a welcome message was offered from World Athletics President Lord Sebastian Coe who was part of the network's founding discussions. Click on the video above to watch the welcome message.
Nearly 200 attendees from over a dozen countries came together to discuss Harnessing the Power of Sport for Innovation with topics including Education and Policy, Sports Technology, Human Performance and Environment and Sustainability. The second annual GSUN Summit brought together academics, industry partners, athletes, leagues, federations and more from around the world to discuss the enormous potential of sport to address timely, complex problems in human performance, product engineering and innovation, exercise and wellness, inclusion, and other societal issues surrounding sport.
The GSUN '26 Summit will be hosted by German Sport University Cologne on October 7-8, 2026.
GSUN Chair Jo Maher takes the baton from past network chair Chris Linton at the GSUN Leadership Council Meeting in September.
Council Leadership Changes Hands
In the GSUN Leadership Council meeting on 9 September, Professor Jo Maher, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Sport at Loughborough University took the baton from past chairs, Professor Chris Linton, Loughborough University and Professor Dennis Galvan, University of Oregon, who served as the inaugural network chairs. Professor Timothy Caroll, University of Queensland, was installed as chair elect. The four serve as the executive committee of the Leadership Council. The Council's work for 2025 focuses on the growth of the network and creating opportunities for broader engagement around the globe. Leadership Council Members are:
German Sport University Cologne, Germany
Loughborough University, United Kingdom
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
The University of British Columbia, Canada
University of Cape Town, South Africa
University of Michigan, United States
University of Oregon, United States
The University of Queensland, Australia
Seoul National University, South Korea
University of São Paulo, Brazil
Waseda University, Japan