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Synergy Sports recognised at the 2019 Australia & New Zealand Sports Technology Awards

Nick Maywald Atrium Sports

Synergy Sports has been recognised at the Australia & New Zealand Sports Technology Awards (ANZSTA) for its global influence and local impact.

Synergy Sports’ Chair, Nick Maywald, was recognised with the Lifetime Leadership Award for his outstanding contribution to the sports technology industry over the past 20 years. In addition, Kilsyth Basketball FIBA Connected Stadium, designed and implemented by Synergy Sports, was a finalist in the Best Stadium and Venue Technology category.

Maywald founded SportingPulse in 1999 to develop competition management software for grassroots basketball and Australian Football League (AFL) associations. The solution transformed how the game was administered and offered content for players and fans. The technology was picked up by the Australian Football League (AFL), rugby league, football and many other sports.

In 2004, SportingPulse technology was adopted by FIBA, basketball’s global governing body. Maywald and his team developed FIBA Organizer and FIBA Live Stats, now used in over 130 countries, and went on to work with FIFA, the NBA and Asian Football Confederation.

Maywald is now Chair of Synergy Sports. Backed by US private investment firm Elysian Park Ventures, the company last week announced a pioneering partnership with FIBA. The FIBA Connected Stadium will give basketball venues worldwide the opportunity to be equipped with Keemotion’s market leading automated video capture technology, with Kilsyth Basketball Stadium being one of the first.

Keemotion technology installed at Kilsyth Basketball Stadium uses computer vision and artificial intelligence to deliver the highest quality fully automated video capture and end-to-end sport production. Game data supports a commentator information system and Synergy Sports’ newly launched Enhanced Visual Overlay (EVO) product delivers live graphics, team and player statistics. Games are streamed to Facebook Live and YouTube using a cloud-based live production distribution system, giving fans the choice of when, where and how they enjoy the game.

Kilsyth Basketball CEO, Will van Poppel said, “Synergy Sports and Keemotion technology and solutions have had a dramatic impact. We have live streamed over 100 games this season including U14, NBL1, Big V Youth, VJBL Junior and wheelchair games. Increased popularity and visibility has extended sponsor reach. It has opened up new content and commercial opportunities, putting us in a strong position to grow and scale well into the future.”

In accepting the Lifetime Leadership Award Maywald said, “This personal recognition is made all the better by Synergy Sports and Keemotion being a finalist for Best Stadium and Venue Technology for the Kilsyth Basketball FIBA Connected Stadium. I am very proud to have been at the forefront of creating affordable technology solutions for sports over the last 20 years, working with the best scientific and commercial minds. Thanks to ASTN, government commitment and university excellence, Australian sports and technology companies are leading the world. What we have achieved here in Australia at Kilsyth Basketball Stadium is just the beginning for the FIBA Connected Stadium. This model will be replicated worldwide to bring basketball the benefits of automated content capture and the enhanced commercialisation that brings – making basketball the most digitally advanced community in sport.”

ASTN Chairman, James Demetriou said, “Nick Maywald has been a pioneer of the Australian sports technology industry for the past 20 years and has lived our mantra of “born global or die local”. He continues to ensure that Australian sports technology plays a key role in powering world sport.”

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