A new delegation showed up to the Maccabiah Games in Israel on Wednesday, displaying its skills in the sports tech marketplace instead of on the playing field.
For the first time in its history, the Maccabiah Games—the quadrennial Olympic-style sports competition for Jewish athletes around the world—welcomed a group of ten Israeli sports tech startups to present their products to Maccabiah VIPs and athletes. According to a press release, “Masters Guests” attended a “Sports Tech VIP Cocktail” at the InterContinental David Hotel in Tel Aviv.
Representatives from the startups had the chance to make pitches to wealthy potential investors and business owners from over 30 countries, as well as athletes who could potentially use the technology, the release said. The event was brought to fruition by Colosseum, an Israel-based sports tech community, in partnership with law firm Yigal Arnon.
Colosseum is emerging as a platform for startups to advance and become successful, as well as to connect with sponsor corporations. “It’s very important that — I’ve seen the stats, and there’s a lot of startups that don’t succeed,” Barr Solnik, Colosseum’s managing director, said in a phone interview. “When I started trying to find out, ‘OK, where do I want to put my efforts in the workforce,’ I said, ‘OK, let me help the economy by helping startups to meet the right people so they can really grow and succeed.'”
Among the group of companies was Motionize, which helps kayakers track their movements and improve their strokes; VRHealth, a virtual reality physical therapy program; Spydro, an underwater camera for sport fishing; and Elastic Media, a user-responsive digital media platform.
The startups were required to apply to attend, and criteria for inclusion in the event: for one, startups had to solve a unique problem or present a solution within a specific sports tech category, according to Solnik.
“Motionize I think is quite successful, and they’ve raised quite some money. They’re already moving forward — some people might even call them a company already, or very soon,” Solnik said. “Some of them are grassroots, got some investment in beginning rounds, and trying more to get clients and proceed to raise a few million dollars in investment and things like that.”
VRHealth has also had some success, raising $1.5 million so far. Now, Solnik said, they’re trying to market their product, VRPhysio, in the United States. Elastic Media has raised $1.6 million and is pushing towards applying their video-swiping technology to sports content.
According to Solnik, 300 or more people were expected to attend the event: “If each startup connects with one or two people who can help it along, it’s worth it.” Perhaps, too, an athlete comes away with a new technological solution to improve in his or her sport and compete at the Maccabiah’s highest level.
