IOC President, Kirsty Coventry on the power of sport to transform lives and communities
Sport Group’s community projects that transformed sport and spaces in 2025
On 21 November, sport leaders from the Olympic capital gathered in Lausanne, Switzerland to hear IOC President, Kirsty Coventry deliver the opening talk at TEDxLausanneWomen. Sport Group was proud to support this valuable event.
The two-time Olympic gold medalist who became the first woman to be elected President of the International Olympic Committee in March 2025 has been a lifelong advocate for integrity, inclusion, and youth empowerment. She has led reforms in Zimbabwe as Minister of Youth, Sport, Arts and now carries the mission of leading the Olympic Movement toward a new era of inclusivity and global impact.
Sport as a bridge for peace
Her talk focused not on the podium but on the unique power of sport to transform lives and unite communities. She recalled her proudest moment after winning her first Olympic gold. It wasn’t the winning of that medal that mattered, but witnessing the reaction to it in her home country of Zimbabwe. She arrived home to thousands of people who had come together in celebration. This was the moment she realized the true power of sport to unify a broken, diverse community.
Building safe spaces for children to play sport
From the helm of global sport, Kirsty’s talk was a reminder of the importance of grassroots. Sport grows from the roots of community where resilience, compassion, confidence and connection are forged – values at the heart of the Foundation she founded in her name which focuses on building safe spaces for children to play sport.
“The two-time Olympic gold medalist who became the first woman to be elected President of the International Olympic Committee in March 2025 has been a lifelong advocate for integrity, inclusion, and youth empowerment.”
Transforming sport and spaces
While we are proud to create some of the biggest sporting stages in the world from Olympic hockey venues to the US Open, Sport Group’s north star is to transform sport and spaces for the communities we serve. We recognize that in a changing world of urban growth, environmental impacts, technological explosions and healthy living challenges, we, as a leader in the industry, must continue investing in new solutions to ensure that sport and leisure remain a vital heartbeat of all our communities.
‘I am because we are’
Kirsty’s talk threw into sharp focus the important work that is at the heart of our business. Her adoption of the Zimbabwean philosophy of Ubuntu - ‘I am because we are’ – is a reminder that sport is one of humanity’s most powerful forces for good.
We work in communities around the world
Each year the Sport Group companies and our installation partners are involved in thousands of projects that bring sport and recreation to communities around the world, two that stood out in 2025 were:
Albert Schweitzer Familienwerk Foundation Orphanage, Philippines
This orphanage in Cebu, Philippines is home to children from infants to teenagers. They needed a safe and sheltered place to play, so alongside our local installation partner E-Sports we helped to build a full-sized covered basketball court and a new shaded playground. The works were completed in April 2025. One of the older boys has since been selected to play for the district basketball team and, more importantly, happiness and pride amongst the children has grown since the transformation of their outdoor spaces.
Albert Schweitzer Familienwerk Foundation Orphanage, Philippines
Albert Schweitzer Familienwerk Foundation Orphanage, Philippines
Capel Sound Tootgarook Community Netball Club, Australia
Recently, our installation partner Grandslam Surfaces, resurfaced 6 netball courts at the Capel Sound Tootgarook Community Netball Club. Manufactured by Advanced Polymer Technology (APT) in Melbourne, these were the first Laykold courts installed with recycled paint from Paintback. Each court contains 22% recycled paint in the base layer. The collaboration between APT and Paintback, will upcycle unwanted domestic paint into all Australian-made Laykold courts, demonstrating that sport can also be a force for environmental good.
Capel Sound Netball courts
Capel Sound Netball courts