Sports for Innovation: Supporting Experimentation Turns Ideas into Change

Innovation in sport often doesn’t start from institutions. It is the communities and frontline organisations that are usually the ones applying innovative lens in how they use sport for social change — testing new approaches to expand access to rights and strengthen the society. 

Yet for many of these innovators, showing that their novel and out-of-the-box ideas have the potential for real impact is only part of the challenge. Building credibility and visibility as an organisation willing to test and experiment to expand the impact of sport for good can be just as difficult. 

Community projects recognised as part of the Ignite365 Award, the inaugural initiative of the Olympism365 Innovation Hub, have exemplified the range of outcomes funding can provide for their and similar organisations. Beyond resourcing, funding from well-established institutions and initiatives such as the Olympism365 encourages innovators to experiment, learn from challenges, and gain the legitimacy needed to bring new ideas into broader systems.

Many social innovators work outside the mainstream structures of traditional sport or sport for sustainable development. Their work may address topics that institutions are sometimes slow to engage with in the full extent or recognise in their importance, from disability justice to gender justice. 

For organisations within the Ignite365 ecosystem, the association with the International Olympic Committee and Olympism365 has helped bridge that gap between their work and institutional recognition. In addition to supporting experimentation, the Olympism365 Innovation Hub also elevated the visibility of innovators, prompting their ideas up to be given more consideration by other partners, institutions, and governments. This credibility has, in some cases, opened doors to entirely new conversations. 

Never Stop Playing Sports, one of the recipients of the Ignite365 Award, used the received funding and recognition to expand educational programmes addressing menstruation and the health of women athletes in Japan. Through development of new materials, workshops, and trainings, the initiative grew beyond its original target of student athletes to reach adult athletes as well. 

Just as importantly, the visibility that followed the Ignite365 funding created new institutional opportunities for them. “The IOC Ignite365 Award brought us international recognition and trust. We were invited by government officials to discuss the issue of menstruation and sports,” shared  Hanae Ito from Never Stop Playing Sports.

What began as an educational initiative evolved to become part of policy conversations, demonstrating how credibility can transform a grassroots innovation into a topic of institutional and national relevance.

Behind such and similar impact and successes lies a less visible but equally important reality: innovation is rarely a straight line. 

Several Ignite365 innovators reported that their original plans evolved significantly during implementation of their programmes. In some cases, ambitions had to be scaled or adapted. For instance, Never Stop Playing Sports team initially envisioned building large-scale technological platforms to support their work, including digital tools and multilingual resources. However, when those ambitions proved difficult to realise within the available funding , they ultimately focused their efforts on educational content and direct engagement with women athletes. 

These shifts are not signs of failure. They are part of the experimentation that innovation requires. Programmes that allow organisations to test and adapt accordingly create the conditions for stronger ideas to emerge over time. 

Another lesson to pick from the Ignite365 experience is the importance of flexibility. Innovators frequently contrasted the programme with more traditional funding structures. Rather than treating organisations as grant recipients required to follow rigid plans, Ignite365’s approach allowed space for dialogue, adjustment, and shared learning. 

One innovator, Tomas Machuca from Fenikks, described the difference clearly: “The Olympism365 Innovation Hub stood out for its combination of trust, flexibility, and long-term vision. We felt comfortable explaining adjustments, constraints, and learnings without fear of being penalised for not following a linear plan.”

This flexibility enabled organisations to refine their approaches in real time. Instead of abandoning ideas in the face of challenges, innovators could reassess, improve, and continue building.

A wider lesson from the Ignite365 experience is that innovation thrives when supported by connected ecosystems, not in isolation. 

Funding alone can help launch an idea. However, when financial support is combined with shared learning and visibility, innovators gain something more durable — a platform from which experimentation can lead to wider change. 

Through the Olympism365 Innovation Hub, organisations were able to exchange ideas with peers, access new knowledge, and position their work within global conversations about the role of sports in social progress. 

For funders, this raises an important suggestion: if innovation requires experimentation, adaptation, and learning, shouldn’t funding models make allowance for this? 

The stories that have emerged from Ignite365 Awards show that innovation in sport for sustainable development goes beyond launching new programmes. It is also about creating environments where new ideas can be tested, refined, and recognised. Credibility, visibility, and flexibility are central to that process. 

When innovators have the freedom to experiment, they build credibility as novel thinkers and the legitimacy to engage institutions with truly novel and innovative ideas, which can then move beyond individual projects to influence broader systems. 

For governments, funders, and sport bodies looking to support the next generation of solutions, this is a lesson worth noting – investing in innovation means investing in and trusting the process, not just the outcome. 

^{Cover Photo: Never Stop Playing Sports - Gen Mihara}