Partnering Stakeholders to Enable Singaporeans to Live Better Through Sports

Speech by Mr Edwin Tong, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth & Second Minister for Law at “Spotlight: Celebration of Times” Networking Series for Sports and Fitness Industry

1. Good evening ladies and gentlemen, and all our partners from the sporting industry. Thank you very much for joining us. Glad to be joining you for the first edition of Spotlight.
2. You might wonder what Spotlight is about – this is a really important platform for us and we are having it for the first time for key stakeholders in the sports and fitness industry to come together, socialise, get to know one another, but more importantly, to consider ways in which we can work collaboratively to build the future of sports in Singapore.
3. The sports ecosystem has evolved into a multi-faceted sector comprising of a complex web of stakeholders – different people with different interests but really all focused on the field of play in sports. In today’s environment, sport is so much more than just athletes competing on our screens. From gyms to fitness studios, to sports technology and innovation, sports science, sports management courses and community sports programme – all of us play a different part of a very important ecosystem, building up sport in Singapore.
4. Given the increased complexities and different types of intersections, we thought it is important to have constant conversation and a recognised platform to have that conversation with one another. Through constant communication, we understand each other’s priorities better, gain better alignment on our vision for sports in Singapore and more importantly, how different parts of the sporting industry come together to make that vision a reality.
5. This is the reason why we have put together this evening’s first edition of Spotlight, which we intend to be a quarterly event. The Spotlight Series will enable us to keep our finger on the pulse of the industry and enhance collaboration efforts – so do make friends, network, communicate and collaborate.

Partnerships with Industry Stakeholders

6. A strong partnership between Government and industry stakeholders is critical to developing the sports and fitness sector in Singapore. Just take 2023 alone, the first full year after we took ownership of the Singapore Sports Hub, which is where you are now:
1. The Olympic Esports Week saw more than 50 international and local enterprises working together to make the inaugural edition a real success, showcasing the possibilities of gamification and virtual sport development.
2. We also had sporting events like the PTO Asian Open, FIBA Intercontinental Cup and HYROX Singapore which demonstrated how SportSG’s partnering with international event organisers can really bring sport to a much higher level in Singapore.
3. The International Sports Groundbreakers Challenge that was organised in collaboration with Global Sports Innovation Center (GSIC), provided a platform for companies to develop innovative solutions to address problem statements that the industry faced.
4. The successes of Team Singapore athletes in the sporting arena – at SEA Games, ASEAN Para Games, Asian Games and Asian Para Games – were made possible because of the strong partnerships we have with our National Sports Association (NSAs).
7. These are testament to the vital role that all our partners in the sporting ecosystem play, and we look forward to continuing to foster, develop and work in close collaboration with all of you to build up our partnerships.
8. Speaking of partnerships, I am very happy to announce that the inaugural Singapore Urban Sports and Fitness Festival will take place in August this year. This will be a large-scale festival that brings together an exciting mix of fitness racing, urban sports, mass workouts and thought leadership through sports conferences in Singapore.
9. This event provides an opportunity for Singapore to develop its own sporting property and further strengthen our reputation as a global destination for major sporting events.
10. I want to invite all of you with ideas to increase mass participation in the areas of fitness racing and urban sports to come forward, speak with us, exchange ideas, build networks, and partner with us in curating this festival.

Launch of Sport Data Exchange Singapore

11. Beyond creating new sporting properties, we also want to uplift the industry and fuel greater innovation and creativity through the use of data. I believe that sports today in all fields are really data driven and we are on the cusp of innovative breakthroughs in sports technology, sports innovation, wearables, wellness, and sports science, which will allow us to deliver better performances.
12. Data on sporting trends will help us better understand our consumer base as we look to grow mass consumer sports at the community level. This applies to all of us, whether you are a venue operator, an educational institute, event management company, sport equipment and apparel company, a fitness instructor or coach.
13. Therefore, I’m very happy to announce this evening that we will be launching the Sport Data Exchange Singapore or SportDexSG.
14. SportDexSG will be a web-based platform that facilitates the sharing of data among players in the sport ecosystem. SportSG, will for the first time, make available data from its annual National Sport Participation Survey (NSPS) and selected datasets on ActiveSG swimming facility and gym usage.
15. I believe that there will be something for everyone on the platform. For example,
1. If you are a sport facility operator looking to understand which demographic groups are increasingly going to the gym – the timeslots at which they visit the gym and the amount of time they spent in a gym, and perhaps even in the future, the type of equipment that they frequent and use – then the datasets on ActiveSG gym usage would be a great place to start.
2. Conversely, if you are an events management company, data on the most popular sports or exercise, the demographics within each of these sports and their participation rates from the NSPS can help guide you on the type of events that will be well attended and who your target market or audience are.
3. If you are a fitness instructor or coach, understanding the profile of people participating in your sport, the time in which they typically participate, and the people with whom they collaborate will enable you to better tailor your programms and pricing packages.

Enhanced Enterprise Innovation and Capability Development Grant

16. To further drive innovation and partnerships, we will also be making one further enhancement and this will be to the Enterprise Innovation and Capability Development Grant or InnoGrant for short. We will now be able to fund innovation projects up to $1 million, a five times increase from $180,000 per project.
17. The InnoGrant was initially launched in 2020 to encourage collaborative research and development between sport and adjacent industries and upskill sport professionals.
18. We have since refreshed InnoGrant in three key areas:
1. The scope of eligible projects has been expanded to include Active Virtual Sports. This would be in addition to the current areas of Performance Technology, Experience & Engagement Technology, Materials Technology and Sustainability.
2. Second, the types of eligible organisations have also been expanded to include adjacent industries such as Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) and National Sports Associations (NSAs), in addition to Equipment & Apparel, Sport Facilities, Fitness & Wellness Facilities, Academies & Clubs, Event Organisers/Event Management Companies, Media & Broadcasting and Technology Providers; and
3. The third enhancement to be made is that companies organising independent innovation competitions and challenges will now be eligible to apply for the InnoGrant to be used as prize money for the competition winners.
19. These three enhancement have been made and I’m sure you will be able to consider the viability of these grants in the work that you do. With this refreshed Innogrant, we look forward to seeing more enterprises coming up with innovative solutions to the present challenges that we face, such as how we enhance fan engagement and increase community sport participation.
20. For instance, through this programme, we can explore how to better activate our National Stadium with real time game insights to better engage sports fans and how we can use technology to create inclusive sports experiences for Singaporeans of all abilities.
21. If you have a creative idea to solve this age-old puzzle of how to keep fans engaged or drive up the community levels of sport participation, please come forward and speak to any of my colleagues at SportSG and we can explore how to turn that idea into a solution that can benefit from the grant.

Conclusion

22. Finally, as I conclude, I think we are all living in very exciting times for sport, whether it is on the field or off the field. We are also on the cusp of major breakthroughs in sports, wellness, innovation and technology. Together with SportSG and our assets in Kallang Alive such as the Sports Hub, we want to be at the center of innovation – we want to drive these innovative solutions that will enable Singaporeans to enjoy sport and push the boundaries for our elite sportsmen and sportswomen to push higher, faster and longer.
23. With that, I want to leave you with one message, which is our motto – to enable Singaporeans to live better through sport. I hope that through this event, you will be able to develop and build networks that you previously never thought possible, to yield results in innovation and technology to drive sport forward and truly enable Singapore to live better through sport.
24. Thank you very much.