Scott Tainsky (far right), shown here with Detroit Country Day School players and coaches at a University of Michigan summer team camp, is the new Senior Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs and Academic Operations for the David B. Falk College of Sport.

The earliest memories聽 has involve playing sports and watching the golden age of Big East Conference basketball with stars like Patrick Ewing, Chris Mullin and 麻豆频道University star Pearl Washington.

Now, as a father of two children who play youth sports, Tainsky says the 鈥渁nchor events鈥� in their household revolve around his children鈥檚 games and practices, and the sports they watch together on TV. Tainsky built his research career around the idea that sports bring people together, and that鈥檚 the focus and sensibility he鈥檚 bringing to the as its new senior associate dean of faculty affairs and academic operations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the same feeling I hope to experience very shortly at the (JMA Wireless) Dome,鈥� Tainsky says. 鈥淏eing able to come together and root, root, root for the home team with the family was a salient experience for me as I grew up and became an athlete. Then, as a soon-retired athlete, it evolved from me competing to being one of the people either coaching or analyzing what鈥檚 going on for others to do their best to compete at the highest level.鈥�

Scott Tainsky

Tainsky, who started at Falk College on July 1, was previously a professor of management and Director of Sport and Entertainment Management at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, where he was awarded Mike Ilitch School of Business awards for innovative teaching and excellence in research. He鈥檚 currently editor in chief of the , the official research journal of the (NASSM) and he has co-authored over 50 journal articles, becoming a NASSM Research Fellow in 2015.

At the core of Tainsky鈥檚 research are the decisions made by high-level sports managers and how they impact both organizational performance and the collective well-being of fans.

鈥淪cott鈥檚 research interests鈥揺conomics of sports leagues and teams, player performance analytics, and corporate social responsibility in national and international sports leagues鈥揳lign perfectly with our vision for creating the nation鈥檚 premier College of Sport,鈥� says Falk College Dean Jeremy Jordan. With programs in esports, exercise science, nutrition, sport analytics and sport management, the Falk College of Sport launched July 1 as the on a high-research activity campus (R1) to focus on sport through a holistic academic lens.

We connected with Tainsky to learn more about his research and how it will impact the College of Sport.

How did you develop an interest in studying the impact of sport?

My curiosity about the world and trying to incorporate that into my daily life. Being able to better the community that I鈥檓 a part of is ingrained by the fact that I grew up in a house where my father (Dr. Michael Tainsky) was a researcher鈥攊n his case he was trying to cure cancer and improve people鈥檚 lives that way.

Mine was much more social. As a social scientist, I have noticed the way sport can be such a valuable part of people鈥檚 lives. My first memory was watching Big East basketball, and I liked math. I try to bring those two worlds together to create the best social experiences for the greatest number of people possible.

One of the College of Sport鈥檚 areas of excellence is community sport and wellness, or as Dean Jordan also calls it, 鈥渟port for good.鈥� How does your research fit with the uplifting power of sport?

The intellectual side of that is no one has to do sport; it鈥檚 an elective part of our lives. Since so many are choosing to spend so much of our attention on this leisure activity, it鈥檚 an incredible opportunity to see what people truly value. At the same time, we can provide leadership in utilizing that to help create the most good in the community.

Scott Tainsky with his daughter, Shana, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., after Shana led her club soccer team to the championship of the top flight of the 2021 Women and Girls in Soccer tournament.

We鈥檙e here to help round out that part of their choice, to provide the right amount of sport, marketed and delivered in a way that鈥檚 consumable and made more efficient, where the product is better and where the athletes are more informed.

Is there a specific theme throughout your research?

If there鈥檚 a theme to my research, it鈥檚 this idea of positive externalities, and that鈥檚 a very technical term of what is being produced can produce additional good captured by others. So, for example, in that I did with (Sport Analytics Professor) , we look at how the hotel industry is impacted by college football games. It鈥檚 not like Marriot or Hilton does anything different to be able to raise their rates or increase their occupancy rates on home football games. It happens because there鈥檚 so much excitement around sport; so much interest in being a part of that experience. So, in that case, we鈥檙e looking to quantify the externalities produced by football games.

There are other ways this presents in terms of viewership. When I follow 麻豆频道basketball and 麻豆频道basketball is having a good year, you would think that because we only have so much leisure time and I鈥檓 watching more of the Orange, it might take away the amount I choose to watch other basketball teams. But in fact, the opposite is true. As I become more deeply connected to 麻豆频道basketball, I鈥檓 actually more interested in some of the rival teams we鈥檙e competing against. So, we鈥檙e looking for those externalities, quantifying those externalities, and then helping round out the experience with the understanding that those things that may be counterintuitive are in play. How do we capitalize on this knowledge to produce the most good?

What are your impressions of the Falk College of Sport and what it can become?

Falk College and 麻豆频道University have recognized that there are four legs of the stool, and you can鈥檛 get any balance unless all four of them are functioning and working together. You can鈥檛 create athletes and have competition at the highest level without understanding the exercise science portion and the nutrition portion of sport. You can鈥檛 produce teams and individuals functioning at their highest level without sport management and sport analytics. You can鈥檛 appreciate the whole of it unless all of those pieces are talking with one another…and there is not one other place that鈥檚 doing what鈥檚 happening right now at Falk College. It鈥檚 100 percent the reason I wanted to be a part of this project.

What drew me to Falk College was this vision of what can be if we bring together these disciplines that are often times separated and siloed. It鈥檚 such a welcome idea that I expect us to be doing incredible things quickly because of all the support I鈥檓 seeing and all of the buy-in for what we鈥檙e doing from so many different, important pieces of this puzzle.

Five of the Falk College sport analytics students who worked for the United Football League this season attended the UFL鈥檚 championship game in St. Louis. From left to right, UFL Operations Manager and 麻豆频道University alum Bryan Kilmeade, Zach Seidel, Toby Halpern, Austin Ambler, Danny Baris, Nolan Bruton, UFL Senior Vice President of Technology Scott Harniman and UFL Vice President of Football Technology Brad Campbell.

When seven students from the Department of Sport Analytics in the 聽 started working for the (UFL) this past winter, league officials explained the kind of data they had available and asked the students to pitch their ideas on how to use it.

One dataset tracked quarterback completion probability, and two students, Austin Ambler and Danny Baris, pitched a metric to quantify quarterback decision-making. They call it a 鈥淨B Decision Score,鈥� and it determines if a quarterback made the right passing decision based on the predicted EPA (expected points added) of each receiver on the play.

The UFL officials overseeing the sport analytics students鈥擮perations Manager , Senior Vice President of Technology and Vice President of Football Technology 鈥攚ondered if such a model was possible, but gave Ambler and Baris the go-ahead to try.

鈥淎 week later they came back and gave us a first run-through, and we were like, wow, this is impressive,鈥� Kilmeade says. 鈥淚n our minds this was going to take the whole season. It took a week.鈥�

Throughout the 2025 UFL season, which ran from March 28 through the championship game on June 14, the seven sport analytics majors鈥擜mbler, Baris, Toby Halpern and Zach Seidel (who are all on schedule to graduate this December), Nolan Bruton 鈥�26, Eleanor O’Connor 鈥�27 and Johann Perera 鈥�25鈥攚orked on several significant projects for the league.

In fact, many of their data analysis models were elevated to the teams and their coaches during the season, and they may eventually find their way to the NFL, which has a strong relationship with the UFL. The leagues often discuss rules innovation, technology and player development.

鈥淭his partnership (with the Falk College of Sport) has exceeded our expectations on the league side, and we鈥檙e looking forward to continuing it with as many students who want to do it,鈥� Kilmeade says. 鈥淭he students have impressed everybody we鈥檝e gotten them in front of.鈥�

Invaluable Experience

Kilmeade 鈥�18 was a major in Falk College when the started in 2017. He earned a minor in sport analytics, where Department of Sport Analytics Chair was one of his professors and current Director of Corporate Partnerships and External Engagement was his advisor.

He stayed connected with Paul and Riverso throughout his early professional career with the XFL and USFL, which merged to form the UFL. When he was with the XFL, he reached out to Falk College and its about data regarding kickoffs. The students in the club charted games and their analysis led to the new kickoff rule that was first used in the XFL and adopted by the NFL before the 2024 season.

From left to right, Falk College of Sport students Danny Baris, Toby Halpern, Zach Seidel, Nolan Bruton and Austin Ambler with St. Louis Battlehawks player Pita Taumoepenu, the UFL鈥檚 defensive player of the year this season.

At the UFL, the league has the same issue: Lots of data, but a small staff that can鈥檛 possibly get to it all. So, Kilmeade reached out to Paul and Riverso again and it was a natural fit as UFL President and CEO Russ Brandon is a member of the , and former 麻豆频道University football star Daryl Johnston is the UFL鈥檚 executive vice president of football operations.

between the UFL and the Sport Analytics program marked the first time an American college or university has worked with the nation鈥檚 premier spring football league.

Paul says the experience the students gained from working with the UFL was 鈥渋mpossible to replicate in the classroom鈥� as the league and students held regular meetings to discuss their projects, shared findings through visualization (charts, graphs, dashboards) and strategized on next steps.

鈥淭he main thing I got from working with the UFL was more experience working with data,鈥� says Baris, who majors in sport analytics and statistics. 鈥淚 also was able to experiment with a few types of models that I had not worked with previously, and I gained experience presenting work to people with a less analytical background.鈥�

Game Changers

As Kilmeade says, the students hit the ground running, throwing and kicking. Other examples of their work with the UFL include a point after touchdown conversion (PAT) decision chart, onside kick alternative and game timing.

Falk College of Sport analytics students in St. Louis with the UFL championship trophy, which was won by the DC Defenders, who defeated the Michigan Panthers 58-34.

Ambler, Baris, Bruton, Halpern and Seidel were available to travel to St. Louis for the UFL鈥檚 championship weekend in mid-June. There, they capped their internship experience by staffing the Fan Fest Sportable booth, where fans used the tracking device to measure their throwing skills, and the Tech Suite, where they displayed their work from the season. Kilmeade says film producer and UFL co-owner Dany Garcia was one of the many dignitaries who were impressed by the students鈥� presentation.

鈥淚 was able to do projects with real-world data that were actually used/implemented by the league, and grow my technical skills and abilities by having to learn new techniques in order to accomplish some of the projects,鈥� Ambler says. 鈥淭hese new skills that I learned will be able to be applied to other projects in my future roles throughout my professional career.鈥�

To read the full story, visit the .

David Falk (far left) speaks with students from the sport analytics program during their capstone poster presentations.

鈥淚 think the Rolls-Royce of Falk College, undoubtedly, is the analytics program,鈥� said David Falk, benefactor of the , to a room of senior sport analytics students and their families during their capstone poster presentations. 鈥淲e鈥檝e won virtually every analytics competition for the last few years.鈥�

That was certainly true during the Spring 2025 semester, when sport analytics students were victorious at multiple analytics and research competitions and presented findings at several highly regarded conferences around the country. Below is a recap of the semester鈥檚 highlights.

SABR Analytics Conference

Nathan Backman (left) won best student presentation at the SABR Analytics Conference.

Sport analytics students Owen St. Onge 鈥�26, Payton Smith 鈥�26, Andrew Diamond 鈥�27, Jonah Soos 鈥�25 and Jacob Kalamvokis 鈥�27 won their room in the Diamond Dollars Case Competition, during which teams compete by preparing an analysis and presentation of a baseball operations decision similar to what a team鈥檚 general manager and staff would do in Major League Baseball.

Two students, Nathan Backman 鈥�25 and Brett Cerenzio 鈥�25, took part in the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) Analytics Conference research competition, with Backman winning best student presentation for his research titled .

麻豆频道University Football Blitz

Sport analytics students won every room of the , including one room of entirely first-year students, while also being named winners of the overall competition.

The Football Analytics Blitz tasks students with a current football analytics prompt. They are given a week to put together a presentation for football analytics professionals. The competition brought together students from 25 different universities and judges from eight NFL teams.

The winning Falk College students were:

• Room 1: Charlie Maddux 鈥�26, Jonah Soos 鈥�25, Nathan Backman 鈥�25, Austin Ambler 鈥�26 and Zach Seidel 鈥�26
• Room 2: Nick Wolfe 鈥�27, Jameson Bodenburg 鈥�27, Jacob Kalamvokis 鈥�27 and Jessica Fackler 鈥�27
• Room 3: Noah Bair 鈥�28, Jimmy Roberto 鈥�27, Carter Pointon 鈥�28, Alex Percey 鈥�28 and Braden Hines 鈥�28

MIT Sloan Research Paper Competition

Research conducted by major Alivia 鈥淎va鈥� Uribe 鈥�25, a member of the University’s women鈥檚 soccer team, with sport analytics professors and about the location of penalty kicks at the prestigious MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. Their paper won over thousands of entrants and six other finalists, and Uribe became the first female lead author in the conference鈥檚 19-year history to capture the competition.

Connecticut Sports Analytics Symposium

From left, students Dan Griffiths, Danielle Napierski, Brett Cerenzio and Alivia Uribe at the Connecticut Sports Analytics Symposium

Sport analytics students Danielle Napierski 鈥�26, Dan Griffiths 鈥�26 and Brett Cerenzio 鈥�25 were named runners-up in the Major League Baseball Data Challenge at the Connecticut Sports Analytics Symposium (CSAS).

Alivia Uribe 鈥�25 and Shane Sanders also presented their penalty kick research at CSAS.

American Soccer Insights Summit

Sport analytics students 鈥�27 and Theo Schmidt 鈥�26 presented their work, .

NFLPA Analytics Case Competition

Sport analytics students Christopher Marfisi 鈥�25, Evan Vassilovski 鈥�25, Walker Oettl 鈥�25 and Ryan Severe 鈥�25 were named finalists for their work on the given prompt and traveled to Washington, D.C., to present their findings.

National Collegiate Sports Analytics Championships

Jonah Soos holds his trophy for winning the individual/undergraduate division at the National Collegiate Sports Analytics Championships.

Falk College student Jonah Soos 鈥�25 individual championship, while the undergraduate team of Soos, Hunter Geise 鈥�25, Piper Evans 鈥�25 and Maddy Forster 鈥�25 finished second in the team competition. Two graduate students, Andrew Odnoralov G鈥�25 and Owen Brown G鈥�25 , also competed鈥攁 first for representatives from the Falk College鈥檚 graduate programs.

At this event, students gave five-minute presentations based on analysis of provided data related to brands, teams and athletes. Judges chose a winner based on statistical analysis, data visualization, actionable insights, communication and integrity.

Cincinnati Reds Hackathon

Teams were tasked with modeling a projection system that predicted total plate appearances and batters faced for Major League Baseball players in the 2024 season based on their past data. Sport analytics students Dan Griffiths 鈥�26, Ben Resnic 鈥�26, Hunter Cordes 鈥�26, Jared Weber 鈥�27 and Josh Davis鈥�27 won the Hackathon, with two other teams from the Falk College being named finalists.

To learn more about the college’s academic programs, experiential learning and career opportunities in sport analytics and sport management, visit the Falk College .

Learning didn鈥檛 stop during spring break for dozens of Falk College students who took part in immersive travel opportunities. The college offers a wide array of travel programs for students, with and being pillars of the experience.

Three immersion travel programs this spring provided Falk students with unique opportunities for hands-on learning from leading industry professionals, while also discovering and embracing different cultures.

Ireland

Students enrolled in the Sport Culture in Ireland class spent nine days in Ireland over spring break. The group of 13 students, comprised of and majors, traveled to iconic Irish spots such as the Cliffs of Moher, Temple Bar and Kilmainham Gaol to experience the culture of Ireland.

The students visited the Na Fienna Gaelic Athletic Association club, where they participated in Gaelic football, hurling and handball games with classmates while learning about the sports鈥� history and impact in Ireland. At University College Dublin鈥檚 Institute for Sport and Health, experts in the fields of sports medicine and exercise science gave insightful presentations about injury and rehabilitation research. At a visit to the Leinster Rugby Club, students learned from team officials about the role of technology in athlete development and what it takes to manage a winning sport organization.

Visit the to learn more about the students鈥� experiences in Ireland.

Italy

Falk College students enjoy a cooking lesson in Italy.

In each of the last two springs, students in the Italian Football: Impact and Outcomes class have visited Italy to meet with representatives from Serie A soccer clubs and learn about Italian culture surrounding soccer, or calcio.

The students on this year鈥檚 trip met with representatives from Soccerment, an Italy-based artificial intelligence platform seeking to accelerate the adoption of data analytics into soccer; networked with front office officials from Bologna FC; and toured Viola Park, home of ACF Fiorentina. Students experienced exciting Serie A matchups at Stadio G. Sinigaglia, home of the Como 1907 football club, and Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, home of Inter Milan. Aside from soccer, students toured historic locations such as the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Milan Cathedral. On the final day of the trip, students learned how to make authentic Italian pasta from scratch.

Los Angeles

Falk College students visit SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Students have enjoyed the Falk in Los Angeles Career Exploration trip for more than a decade. Open to all Falk students, the trip offers students the opportunity to connect with industry professionals, explore career paths and visit leading organizations in one of the country鈥檚 largest sport markets.

This year鈥檚 trip included stops at the NFL Network, FOX Sports, Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams, Los Angeles Kings, Los Angeles Clippers, the Rose Bowl and more. Students met and networked with Falk鈥檚 extensive based in southern California to set themselves up for successful careers in the industry.

The and the program at 麻豆频道University have entered an agreement that will allow 麻豆频道sport analytics students to complete statistical analysis and provide insights and visualizations to the UFL. The agreement marks the first time an American college or university has worked with the spring football league.

As part of the agreement, the UFL will provide 麻豆频道students with experience in professional football and access to its employees, while 麻豆频道will provide the data analysis skills of students from the leading sport analytics program in the country.

鈥淭he United Football League is proud to team up with the two-time national champion Sport Analytics program at 麻豆频道University,鈥� said UFL President and CEO Russ Brandon, a member of 麻豆频道University鈥檚 Department of Sport Management . 鈥淚nnovation is at the heart of the UFL, so it is only fitting that we seek out the creativity and the expertise of these students as we look toward a new approach to sports analytics.鈥�

The UFL is the premier spring football league formed from the merger of the XFL and USFL in 2024. Under the combined ownership of RedBird Capital Partners, FOX, Dany Garcia, and Dwayne Johnson, the UFL features eight teams in key markets: Arlington, Texas; Birmingham, Ala.; Detroit, Mich.; Houston, Texas; Memphis, Tenn.; San Antonio, Texas; St. Louis, Mo., and Washington, D.C.

The 2025 UFL season will kick off at 8 p.m. ET Friday, when FOX Sports debuts “FOX UFL Friday”鈥�a new night dedicated to UFL action taking place each Friday during the 10-week regular season鈥�with a matchup featuring the St. Louis Battlehawks against the Houston Renegades. The league鈥檚 second season will conclude on Saturday, June 14, when ABC presents the 2025 UFL Championship Game.

鈥淭he UFL envisions itself as a gathering place for innovative thinkers,鈥� said UFL Vice President of Football Technology Brad Campbell. 鈥淭hanks to the contributions of the sport analytics team at 麻豆频道we will be able to raise this vision to a whole new level.鈥�

Under the leadership of Sport Analytics Undergraduate Director and Professor , Syracuse鈥檚 sport analytics students captured back-to-back National Sport Analytics Championships in 2023-24, and they have won numerous player and team analytics competitions in football, basketball, and baseball. 麻豆频道 70 students are providing data collection and analysis for 13 of 麻豆频道University鈥檚 athletic teams, and the program鈥檚 other professional partners include the Kumamoto Volters鈥� men鈥檚 basketball team in Japan, the Farjestad BK women鈥檚 hockey team in Sweden, the NHL鈥檚 Columbus Blue Jackets, Major League Soccer鈥檚 CF Montreal, and others.

Under the agreement with the UFL, the Sport Analytics program is coordinating student participation, and seven students have joined the first phase, with more to be added later. The UFL is assigning projects related to league operations and initiatives, and the parties are holding regular meetings to discuss projects, share findings through visualizations (charts, graphs, dashboards), and strategize on next steps.

鈥淲e are honored to partner with the UFL and look forward to providing insights and actionable items for the teams and league,鈥� Paul said. 鈥淭he experience and feedback our students will gain from this partnership is something that鈥檚 impossible to replicate in the classroom.聽Opportunities like this have been our dream since the start of the program, and we are so appreciative of all the wonderful people in the UFL and how their experience and expertise will benefit our students in so many ways.鈥�

student and lead author Alivia Uribe 鈥�25, Sport Analytics Professor 聽and Sport Analytics Associate Professor teamed with University of Reading (U.K.) Professor James Reade and University of Stirling (Scotland) senior lecturer Carl Singleton to write 鈥淒o Behavioral Considerations Cloud Penalty-Kick Location Optimization in Professional Soccer: Game Theory and Empirical Testing using Polynomial Regression and ML Gradient Boosting.鈥�

Their research was named best in field at the prestigious , held March 7-8 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston, Massachusetts.

The Sloan Sports Analytics Conference showcases cutting-edge research that鈥檚 featured in top media outlets throughout the world and has changed the way sports are analyzed. This year鈥檚 competition featured six sports tracks: basketball, baseball, soccer, football, business of sports and other sports. Abstracts were selected based on the novelty, academic rigor and impact of the research.

The team that won the Research Paper Competition at the prestigious MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference included, from left to right, Shane Sanders, James Reade, Alivia Uribe, and Justin Ehrlich.

Ehrlich explained that the group submitted an abstract in the fall. Out of thousands of submissions, the most promising were invited to submit full papers. These manuscripts were then evaluated, and the authors of the top seven papers were invited to present orally at the conference in Boston earlier this month. A panel of industry experts judged these presentations, and the winner was announced during an awards ceremony at the conclusion of the conference.

鈥淚 am incredibly proud of our team’s work as it resulted in a fantastic project that resonates deeply with others,鈥� Ehrlich says. 鈥淎lthough aiming for riskier, higher areas of the goal can yield greater expected conversion rates, players typically avoid these zones due to the increased risk of missing entirely, which carries negative perceptions. Our findings generated enthusiasm among many attendees and received considerable attention at the conference.鈥�

Uribe, a forward on the , is the first female lead author to be on the Research Paper Competition-winning team in MIT Sloan鈥檚 19-year history, according to the event organizers.

鈥淭his is something I’m extremely proud of,鈥� says Uribe, a sport analytics minor. 鈥淚 could not be more grateful for the professors who have helped me create this opportunity. The knowledge and expertise I bring into it as a student-athlete is something very unique.鈥�

Sanders and Ehrlich built on their previous analytics research to assist Uribe with her research, while Reade and Singleton provided invaluable soccer data. This was the second consecutive year that Sanders and Ehrlich had a research paper selected among the top seven at MIT Sloan. Last year, they presented their study on the NBA that shows the average expected value of 3-point shots has become less than 2-pointers since the 2017-18 season.

鈥淔alk College is an ideal place to work and teach, the best college I鈥檝e ever been affiliated with by far,鈥� Sanders says. 鈥淭he administrators, faculty, and students really pull together here like nowhere else I鈥檝e been. Moreover, our leadership team has positioned sport analytics to shine as a program.鈥�

Read the team鈥檚 full research paper on the MIT Sloan .

The 麻豆频道University contingent at the AXS National Collegiate Sports Analytics Championship in Nashville, Tennessee. From left to right, Sport Analytics Program Undergraduate Director and Professor Rodney Paul, undergraduate student Hunter Geise, graduate student Owen Brown, undergraduate students Piper Evans and Madelyn Forster, graduate student Andrew Odnoralov, and undergraduate student Jonah Soos.

After students from the Sport Analytics program at 麻豆频道University captured back-to-back undergraduate team titles at the in 2023-24, the program had just one more mountain to climb: An individual championship.

Late last month in Nashville, Tennessee, major Jonah Soos 鈥�25 reached that pinnacle by in the undergraduate business analytics division.

鈥淚t was awesome,鈥� Soos says. 鈥淎ny time you can win a national event of this caliber against steep competition, it’s an incredibly validating feeling for the work you put in.

鈥淚 was so proud to represent 麻豆频道and the Sport Analytics program and all the time and effort they put in to cultivating the best rising talent in sports,鈥� Soos adds.

The 麻豆频道University undergraduate team of Soos, Piper Evans, Madelyn Forster and Hunter Geise just missed a three-peat by finishing a narrow second to the team champions from the University of Iowa. Graduate analytics students Andrew Odnoralov and Owen B. Brown also participated in the competition for Syracuse.

Sport Analytics Undergraduate Director and Professor and Sport Analytics Program Coordinator accompanied the students to Nashville and mentored the group, and Soos praised Paul, Dorchester, and Director of Corporate Partnerships and External Engagement for 鈥渕aking opportunities like these a possibility.鈥�

鈥淥ur group did an excellent job in a challenging and exciting event,鈥� Paul says. 鈥淛onah, as always, was incredible; calm and poised in the heat of competition. He鈥檚 truly a superstar as he makes it look so easy. You can almost see 鈥榯he game鈥� slow down when you hear him present and see the literal art he creates with data. It is amazing to witness.”

Soos, who is minoring in economics and sport management, has worked as a baseball analytics intern at Wasserman, a baseball talent agency, and he鈥檚 currently a data engineering intern for the 麻豆频道University men鈥檚 basketball team. This past August, after presenting his research on pitchers at the Saber Seminar in Chicago, Soos was was hired by the Cincinnati Reds as a baseball analytics trainee for the 2025 season.

We reached out to Soos to learn more about his experience in Nashville and what it took to become a national champion. Here鈥檚 that conversation:

Q: What was the format for the individual and team competitions at the National Championship?

Jonah Soos with the trophy he earned for winning the undergraduate business analytics division

A: It was set up in a March Madness-style bracket, starting with 64 students in 16 different rounds of four students, and two students advanced from each round. Points were awarded for teams for every round a student advanced and totaled over each section (undergraduate and graduate) once the competition concluded to create the team standings.

As students, we presented to a room of judges each round, and if selected in the top two, we moved on to face other students until a winner-take-all final four in front of the entire conference.

Q: What was your 鈥渁ssignment,鈥� and were you given any advance notice of what you would be doing?

A: Our assignment was analyzing PWHL (Professional Women鈥檚 Hockey League) social media data provided by Zoomph to create analytical insights about ways the brand can continue to grow and expand. We were provided sample data and a study guide ahead of time to think through the question and understand the data. Most questions on the study guide were very broad and built to give a lot of flexibility for interpretation and analysis, leading to the true assignment of creatively interpreting the data to find critical data-driven insights.

Q: What was your reaction when you received your assignment?

A: I definitely felt like the competition played into my strengths. My favorite part of data analysis is the storytelling component鈥損lacing data in context to find actionable insights and key takeaways that anyone can understand. In this format with quick presentations and limited time, you really have to be at your best and cut the fluff, only giving judges quick hitters to make a cohesive story.

Q: Can you explain what kind of data you received, what you needed to analyze and how you went about that?

A: We received data from different social media platforms for each PWHL team tracking post reach, engagement and platform-specific effects. We were given roughly four hours to create the data-driven insights and build a presentation before everything was locked and no changes could be made.

Q: How was the data judged and how was it determined that you were the champion of the undergraduate division?

A:聽The first round was definitely the hardest; you had never given your presentation before and had very little prep time. As the rounds went on, I was in a flow state and felt every time my presentation got stronger and stronger up until the finals. The final round, unlike the previous ones, was a winner-take-all from the four students that advanced through the elite eight. Judges then voted on the order of the final four presentations, and I was fortunate enough to be crowned champion.

Q: From your experiences at 麻豆频道University and Falk College, what is it about the program that prepares you to have this kind of success at the national level?

A: The Sport Analytics program is revolutionizing education in sport. To have the opportunity to so frequently interact with alumni in the industry, learn using real world data, and practice and compete against peers to build a collective wealth of knowledge, it’s what leads us to win all these competitions. I’ve learned so much from everyone around me鈥搈y peers, mentors, professors, and industry professionals鈥揳nd without that experience, there is no way I would be where I am.

To read the full story, visit the Falk . To learn more academic programs, experiential learning, and career opportunities in sport analytics, visit the Falk College .

Lega Serie A USA Managing Director Andy Mitchell addresses a classroom of Falk College students

, managing director of Lega Serie A USA (the American division of Italy鈥檚 preeminent soccer league), recently visited Falk College to speak with students in the SPM/SAL聽300 鈥淚talian Football: Impact and Outcomes鈥� class. The course includes a , where the students will meet with Serie A organizations and other industry leaders while learning about the culture of Italy.

We asked sport analytics major Sebastian Bush 鈥�27 about this opportunity to meet Mitchell and ask questions ahead of the Italy trip. Here鈥檚 what he wrote:

鈥淲hen I heard about the opportunity to visit Italy over spring break and learn about the traditions associated with Italian calcio, or soccer as we know it, I knew I had to sign up. The class, “Italian Football: Impact and Outcomes,” isn鈥檛 just about the trip, though, it鈥檚 an exploration of what makes Italian soccer so unique.

Sport analytics major Sebastian Bush 鈥�27 (center) was one of the many students who had questions for Andy Mitchell

鈥淔or example, on Feb. 14 we had the incredible opportunity to hear from the CEO and managing director of Lega Serie A USA, Andy Mitchell. He spoke about his upbringing and early sports fandom, his career path that led him from CNN to Meta, and finally his journey to working in the highest levels of soccer and sports marketing.

Mitchell credited his early experience in the digital landscape as a major factor in his career success. He recounted being “the last man in the pecking order” as a young employee at CNN and therefore being handed digital and website responsibilities that no one else wanted. He found that area of development interesting, and it led him to ultimately becoming vice president of digital marketing and partnerships.

It wasn鈥檛 until a few years ago, however, that Mitchell found his way back to sports. He had never been a huge soccer fan, but after learning about the game both he and his family quickly became infatuated with it. He soon set a goal to work in the industry. Now, over one year into his job at the U.S. office of Serie A, the premier soccer competition in Italy, Mitchell has expanded the league鈥檚 reach throughout North America.

His passion for spreading calcio across the United States is clear. From newsletters to corporate partnerships to social media and community-driven campaigns, Mitchell and his small staff have achieved quite a lot. Getting to hear about the complexities of these deals as well as Mitchell鈥檚 day-to-day responsibilities and challenges was an amazing glimpse into the elaborate world of Italian soccer.

One highlight of聽 Mitchell鈥檚 talk was hearing his insight into how he and his colleagues support Serie A teams and players in United States-based initiatives. For example, he talked about working with Puma and the agent for U.S. Men鈥檚 National Team star Christian Pulisic to build the Pulisic Stomping Grounds, a community-forward philanthropic effort to support youth soccer across the country.

This was just one of the many efforts Lega Serie A USA has been involved with, and it鈥檚 a great example of some of the incredible work that goes on behind the scenes. Overall, Mitchell鈥檚 talk provided invaluable context about the landscape of Italian soccer and helped prepare us for the upcoming trip to Italy later this semester.

Visit the to learn more about academic programs, career opportunities, and immersion trips in the Departments of Sport Management and Sport Analytics.

It鈥檚 the first partnership of this kind between an American college or university and a Japanese professional sports team. As part of this agreement, sport analytics students and faculty will work in different capacities with students and faculty from , which is located on the Japanese island of Kyushu.

Kumamoto Basketball Co., Ltd., President and Chief Executive Officer Satoshi Yunoue says partnering with Syracuse鈥檚 prestigious sport analytics program will improve the team鈥檚 performance as it seeks to move from the Japanese B.League鈥檚 B2 league to the B1 league. The Volters open their season on Oct. 7.

鈥淚n recent years, the importance of data has been gaining attention, and we are confident that together with Kumamoto University, (Syracuse) will support us in the analytics portion and contribute to improving our winning percentage as we accumulate know-how in data analysis,鈥� Yunoue said in a statement on the team鈥檚 website that was translated into English.

鈥淲e are excited to be able to work with 麻豆频道University, which is leading the way in data analysis in the field of basketball in the United States,鈥� Yunoue added.

The Falk College鈥檚 partnership with Kumamoto is the next phase for sport analytics students, who already provide data analysis for 11 of Syracuse’s athletic teams. In this photo, sport analytics major Dan Griffiths reviews performance data with track and field student-athlete Elizabeth Bigelow.

In serving as the Volters鈥� de facto analytics department, seven undergraduate and graduate students in sport management will remotely collect and analyze a variety of data, including player performance statistics, live game video, information from wearables that track performance data, and business and operations data.

“We are honored and excited about the partnership between Kumamoto University and 麻豆频道University Sport Analytics,鈥� says Sport Analytics Undergraduate Director and Professor . 鈥淲e look forward to providing statistical insights, building visualizations and models, and doing everything we can to help with the success of the Volters as we build what we hope to be a lasting collaboration with our wonderful partners at both Kumamoto University and the Volters.”

Under Paul鈥檚 leadership, sport analytics students have captured back-to-back National Sport Analytics Championships, and they have won numerous player and team analytics competitions in basketball, football and baseball. 麻豆频道 70 students are providing data collection and analysis for 11 of 麻豆频道University鈥檚 athletic teams, and other partnerships such as the one with Kumamoto are in the works both nationally and globally.

Previously, the Volters utilized staff members to analyze data on a limited basis. In addition to analyzing the Volters鈥� data, the 麻豆频道students will help analyze data from opposing teams, and the collaboration with 麻豆频道and Kumamoto University will help the Volters build their own data analysis team.

鈥淲e would like to use the Volters as a hub to connect university students in Kumamoto and America,鈥� Yunoue says. 鈥淲e are grateful for this connection, and we will become a team and work together as colleagues working toward this goal.鈥�

Paul says this partnership speaks to the uniqueness of the sport analytics program because 麻豆频道students will apply the skills they鈥檙e learning in the classroom to a variety of areas for the Volters that will benefit from data analysis.

鈥淭his is the next step in the evolution of our program where our students are working in a practical laboratory with a professional team in another country and all that goes with it,鈥� Paul says. 鈥淭hese are the ways they can show off their skills, and with the different time zones they can wake up in the morning and see the score of the game and the results of what they did.鈥�

Over the summer, sport management major Camila Malda 鈥�25 (far left) interned with the Chicago Red Stars while sport analytics major Adelaide Gilley 鈥�25 (far right) interned with the Houston Astros.

Adelaide Gilley, a senior in the Falk College鈥檚 program, already has an extensive resume of on-campus experiences. She is co-head of player performance for the 麻豆频道University men鈥檚 basketball team, vice president of membership for the Sport Management Club and co-chair of the club鈥檚 , to name a few. Now, she can add baseball operations intern for the to the growing list.

Adelaide Gilley

Gilley says a connection she made at a in Philadelphia that she attended through the Falk College last September helped her get the internship with the Astros for summer 2024. As a Houston native, Gilley says it was a dream come true to work for her hometown team.

Camila Malda, a senior in Falk鈥檚 , is originally from Mexico City, Mexico. She spent her summer as a corporate partnerships intern for the of the National Women鈥檚 Soccer League (NWSL).

Camila Malda

Her tasks included helping to organize and carry out the Red Stars鈥� Pride Night and a special game night at Chicago鈥檚 iconic Wrigley Field, home of the Chicago Cubs. The Wrigley Field game set a record for the highest attendance at a NWSL match with 35,038 spectators.

Malda says a fellow Red Stars intern in ticket sales is also a Falk College student, reinforcing a lesson she has heard from her professors: 鈥淵ou鈥檙e going to end up working with or under someone from 麻豆频道University.鈥�

We spoke with both Gilley and Malda while they were in the middle of their internships this summer. The below videos highlight their experiences working with professional sports organizations.

During the academy, participants experience college life firsthand鈥搑esiding in dormitories on campus, eating at dining halls, using university labs and facilities, and practicing with such industry software as Tableau and Excel.

鈥淚t鈥檚 helpful; moving in, especially. Knowing what I鈥檒l need will make it easier a year from now when I鈥檓 moving into whatever dorm,鈥� says Max Kaplan, a rising senior from Marietta, Georgia, who hopes that dorm is at 麻豆频道University next fall. Kaplan learned about the academy during a tour in March and plans to apply for early decision to the Falk College.

This summer鈥檚 schedule included trips to the 麻豆频道Crunch, 麻豆频道Mets, Highmark Stadium in Buffalo and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown; speaking with industry professionals; and touring facilities. Back on campus, one of the activities had students complete NFL combine-style exercises while wearing Catapult Sports Technology vests that track performance data such as heart rate, blood oxygenation and energy expenditure. Students later analyzed that data and used it to hold a fun mock draft.

Students in the Berlin Sport Analytics academy take part in Esports Day, playing video games while filling out scouting reports to pick up on trends, strategies and behaviors.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e getting a real taste of what it means to do sport analytics here at 麻豆频道University. A lot of what we鈥檙e doing is hands-on experience working with data in the same sort of way that they would as students here and as professionals,鈥� says Assistant Professor , who organizes and oversees the Berlin Academy program.

This summer鈥檚 program included an esports day as Falk College prepares to launch its in tandem with the this fall. During the exercise, video games and analytics came together, demonstrating there is more to esports than just playing video games.

鈥淲hile one person in the pair is playing, the other person is doing scouting reports. We are looking to do our best to simulate what in-game analytics would look like, the fast pace of it and marking off certain events that are happening, and looking at frequencies and strategies,鈥� says Nick Riccardi, adjunct professor in the Falk College.

The academy brings students with an interest in the sport industry together, building long lasting connections and relationships.

Dani Dallas, an academy participant from San Francisco, was apprehensive after learning she was one of only three girls in her session, but those fears quickly went away.

鈥淚鈥檝e never felt singled out or different or like I don鈥檛 have as much knowledge about sports,鈥� Dallas says. 鈥淓veryone has been super nice and welcoming. Even the guys in my class have just wanted to be genuine friends.鈥�

Kaplan echoed a similar feeling about the group.

鈥淢aking friends is quite easy here because we鈥檙e all kind of in the same situation, so that鈥檚 been very nice and helpful,鈥� Kaplan says.

. Visit the to learn more about the sport analytics program.

The Berlin Sport Analytics Academy is made possible through the generous support of Andrew Berlin 鈥�83 and Falk College鈥檚 partners in the .

The , in collaboration with the and the Las Vegas-based guest experience agency , spent more than a year planning the event, which was held July 15-17 at the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

From left, Rick Harrow of Harrow Sports Ventures, Falk College benefactor David Falk 鈥�72 and UNLV Sports Innovation Chief Operating Officer Jay Vickers are shown at the opening keynote address for the Sports, Entertainment and Innovation Conference (SEICon).

The event featured exhibitor pods, innovation labs, daily keynotes, seminars/sessions, alumni gatherings, networking events, roundtables and daily wrap parties with music entertainment.

鈥淪EICon was a great success,鈥� says Sport Analytics Professor , who helped organize the event. 鈥淭he panelists were terrific, the Innovation Hub showed off incredible technology and the keynotes were incredibly informative. We are extremely proud of our partnership with UNLV and Circle and greatly look forward to future joint endeavors.鈥�

Attendees met with industry executives while exploring the latest innovations in sports and entertainment, esports and gaming, sports sociology and diversity, broadcast brands and media, research and development, and more.

麻豆频道University Sport Analytics students Danny Baris 鈥�26, Jessica Fackler 鈥�26, Daniel Griffiths 鈥�26, Marcus Mann 鈥�26, Piper Moskow 鈥�26, and Jonah Soos 鈥�25 presented their research at SEICon鈥檚 Innovation Hub.

Among the 麻豆频道University alumni serving as panelists were Jesse Abrams 鈥�13, Julie Nemeroff Friedman 鈥�08, Jasmine Jordan 鈥�14, Lori Robinson 鈥�09, Chris Sotiropulos 鈥�10 and Alyssa Wood 鈥�15. Also, SEICon鈥檚 Innovation Lab featured alums Casey Miller 鈥�08, Nick Twomey 鈥�17 and Simon Weiss 鈥�17.

Circle chief executive officer and Sport Management Advisory Council member Shawn Garrity 鈥�86 serves as SEICon Director. The next SEICon event is scheduled for Nov. 19 in New York City.

In his work with the U.S. Track and Field team, sport analytics major Dan Griffiths attended the New York City Grand Prix Meet鈥搕he final meet for track and field athletes before the U.S. Olympic Trials.

The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics and Paralympics are here and representatives from the Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics at 麻豆频道University will have an impact on this year鈥檚 Games鈥揳nd, quite possibly, future Olympic Games.

The Falk College representatives who are involved in several unique ways with the Olympics and Paralympics include current Falk students Dan Griffiths and Livia McQuade, Department of Sport Management Associate Professor Jeeyoon 鈥淛amie鈥� Kim, and Sport Management graduates and former 麻豆频道University student-athletes Freddie Crittenden III ’17, Kristen Siermachesky聽 ’21 and Lysianne Proulx ’21.

Here are their stories:

Student: Dan Griffiths

Dan Griffiths spent this past academic year working with the 麻豆频道University cross country and track and field teams.

At 麻豆频道University and now with the U.S. Track and Field team (), sport analytics major Dan Griffiths聽鈥�26 is helping to revolutionize how performance data is collected and analyzed.

When Griffiths started working with the 麻豆频道track and field and cross country teams before the 2023-24 academic year, the teams weren鈥檛 utilizing a data-gathering system. But the student-athletes were using Garmin wearables to track their own data, so Griffiths built his own application and a tool that transported all of their data into his application, which then created spreadsheets he used to analyze that data.

With Griffiths鈥� help, the 麻豆频道women鈥檚 cross country team won its since 2011. Throughout the academic year, Griffiths conducted and presented his research at various national competitions and conferences, including the (he was runner-up in sport analytics research), and the inaugural Sport, Entertainment and Innovation Conference () last week in Las Vegas.

Griffiths鈥� success at 麻豆频道and his interest in track and field led to his connection with USATF, which gave him the freedom to explore his areas of interest. Using a combination of the latest technology, Griffiths helped create three-dimensional models to best understand an athlete鈥檚 musculoskeletal forces.

鈥淔or throwers (discus, shotput, javelin), my work focused on using a pose estimation model to detect patterns that could be linked to longer, more powerful throws,鈥� Griffiths says. 鈥淔or sprinters and distance runners, I used pose estimation data to monitor overtraining and track progress throughout the season and before meets.

鈥淚 also conducted extensive research for multi-event athletes in the heptathlon and decathlon,鈥� he adds. 鈥淭his research aimed to understand how fatigue affects scoring in multi-events and how different training sequences can reduce fatigue.鈥�

Griffiths shared his work with the coaches, and at least two of the athletes he analyzed will be participating in the Olympics: javelin thrower Curtis Thompson and 400-meter runner Alexis Holmes. During his time with USATF, Griffiths traveled to the New York City Grand Prix Meet鈥搕he final meet for track and field athletes before the U.S. Olympic Trials鈥揳nd the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon.

鈥淭he thing we think about every morning is 鈥楬ow can we win another gold medal today?鈥�”聽Griffiths says. 鈥淗aving the opportunity to combine everything I’ve learned and truly be a trailblazer and innovator for USATF and those athletes, especially in a track and field biomechanics context, has made me uber-passionate about the work we are doing at 麻豆频道and the future of AI/analytics and sports.鈥�

The track and field events run Aug. 1-11.

Student: Livia McQuade

Sport Management major Livia McQuade will attend the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games to serve as a resource for U.S. athletes, their families and their sponsors.

Livia McQuade 鈥�25 is a sport management major and sport event management minor who has spent this summer in Loveland, Colorado, as an athlete relations intern with . Olympus is a management and marketing agency that provides top sponsorship opportunities and marketing strategies for Olympic and Paralympic athletes.

In her role, McQuade has interfaced with athletes from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams and their partners, and with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee and other national governing bodies. Her projects have included reviewing contracts, building athletes鈥� personal websites and organizing outlines for athletes鈥� speaking engagements.

鈥淚鈥檝e had a truly incredible experience within the Olympic and Paralympic Movement–during a Games year of all times!鈥� McQuade says. 鈥淭hrough it all, I’ve had the privilege to work with some of sport’s most impactful Olympians and Paralympians, including Apolo Ohno, Jessica Long, Noah Elliott, Sarah Adam, Alex and Gretchen Walsh, Alex Ferreira and Steve Serio.鈥�

McQuade, the executive vice president of the in Falk College and co-chair of the club鈥檚 2024 , says she wants to work with the Olympic and Paralympic movement following graduation and this internship has been an invaluable step in that process. Her experience with Olympus will continue in September, when she鈥檒l attend the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games to serve as a resource for U.S. athletes, their families, and their sponsors. The Paralympic Games run from Aug. 28-Sept. 8.

鈥淚 could not be more grateful and excited,鈥� McQuade says of her upcoming experience in Paris. 鈥淢y leadership (at Olympus Sports Group)鈥揑an Beck and ’16鈥揾ave thrown extraordinary opportunities my way, and they will remain valuable mentors long into my career.鈥�

Freddie Crittenden III, shown here competing for Syracuse, will represent the U.S. in the 110-meter hurdles event in Paris.

At the U.S. Olympic Trials in late June, longtime U.S. hurdler聽聽鈥�17 qualified for his first Olympic Games by running a personal-best 12.96 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles. Crittenden finished second overall to teammate and three-time world champion Grant Holloway, who recorded a time of 12.86.

A public health major at Falk and former All-American for the 麻豆频道track and field team, Crittenden just missed a bronze medal at the World Championships last summer and now at age 29, the Olympic Trials may have been his last opportunity to qualify for the Olympics.

鈥淚t feels amazing. Honestly, I鈥檓 still in shock and I鈥檓 trying to figure out what happened,鈥� Crittenden said immediately after his Olympic Trials run. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 an amazing feeling to come out here and accomplish what I鈥檝e been trying to accomplish for the past 17 years. It鈥檚 beautiful.鈥�

Two former sport management majors and 麻豆频道student-athletes, rower Kristen Siermachesky 鈥�21 and soccer goalkeeper Lysianne Proulx 鈥�21, are alternates for the Olympics with .

Proulx is Team Canada鈥檚 third-choice goalkeeper, meaning she will be activated if either the starting or backup goalkeeper is injured. Although she didn鈥檛 start at 麻豆频道until her junior season, Proulx recorded the fourth-most saves (281), second-most saves per game (5.3) and seventh-most shutouts (eight) in program history.

Since graduating from Syracuse, Proulx has excelled in professional leagues in Portugal, Australia and now in the United States with of the National Women鈥檚 Soccer League. This past February, Bay FC acquired Proulx from Melbourne City for what Melbourne City described as a record-breaking transfer fee for an outgoing A-League player.

A native of Montreal, Quebec, Proulx represented Canada in the FIFA U-17 Women鈥檚 World Cup and FIFA U-20 Women鈥檚 World Cup. She went to the 2023 FIFA Women鈥檚 World Cup as Team Canada鈥檚 third-choice goaltender behind Kailen Sheridan and Sabrina D鈥橝ngelo, who have maintained their positions for the Olympics.

Former 麻豆频道goalkeeper and sport management graduate Lysianne Proulx (center, with ball) is an alternate for Team Canada鈥檚 soccer team.

Like Proulx, Siermachesky will be available to her team if an injury occurs. But unlike Proulx, her path to Canada鈥檚 rowing team featured a different sport at Syracuse: ice hockey. She played four years as a defenseman at 麻豆频道and recorded a black-and-blue inducing 132 blocks in 125 games for the Orange.

After graduating from Syracuse, the native of New Liskeard, Ontario, considered playing ice hockey overseas but decided to pursue her graduate degree in sports administration at North Carolina. She wanted to continue her athletics career, but North Carolina doesn鈥檛 have an ice hockey team. Then-麻豆频道ice hockey coach Paul Flanagan suggested she try rowing and contacted the Tar Heels鈥� coach to make that connection.

Siermachesky鈥檚 athleticism and potential caught the eye of the Team Canada Development Team, which asked her to move to British Columbia to train with the national team. Just three years into the sport, she is now on the cusp of competing in the Olympics and it鈥檚 likely she and Proulx will remain in the mix for the next summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

The rowing competition runs from July 27-Aug. 3, while the women鈥檚 soccer tournament started July 24 and runs through Aug. 10.

Associate Professor Jeeyoon 鈥淛amie鈥� Kim at the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.

Faculty: Jeeyoon 鈥淛amie鈥� Kim

聽is an associate professor in the Department of Sport Management who studies the long- and short-term social and economic effects of hosting the Games and other major sporting events. Kim is the former manager of the Korean Olympic Committee, and on Aug. 8 she鈥檒l present at the 11th International Sport Business Symposium in Paris.

Kim鈥檚 presentation will focus on how the聽, an Olympic-style event for athletes between 15 and 18 years old, can better impact their host city and support the aims of the Olympic Movement.

鈥淭he hope for Olympic sport participation legacy is grounded on the 鈥榯rickle-down effect鈥� (i.e., watching Olympians compete will inspire youth to participate in sport),鈥� Kim says in a recent Q&A. 鈥淔or the Youth Olympics, the event can also be a steppingstone for younger athletes to compete on the international stage and grow to become Olympians. Additionally, the Youth Olympics offer many grassroots-level sport opportunities (e.g., sport camps, collaboration with local schools) to encourage the general youth to learn about Olympic sports.鈥�

To combat youths鈥� dwindling interest in the Olympics, the International Olympic Committee added break dancing, sport climbing and surfing to the lineup for Paris. Kim says this is a critical time for the future of the Olympics as upcoming Games in Paris, Milan Cortina (2026), and Los Angeles (2028) will be held in traditionally strong sports markets where there are opportunities to increase interest.

鈥淧aris 2024 will be the first Olympics to include breaking in the official program,鈥� Kim says. 鈥淲e will have to see how the event turns out. But, so far, looking at the Olympics qualifiers series and the ticket popularity, it seems like there is a lot of interest garnered for the sport.鈥�

Kim spent five-and-a-half years with Korean Olympic Committee as a member of its International Games, International Relations and 2018 PyeongChang Olympics task force teams. While in Paris, Kim will conduct research in Korea鈥檚 Olympic Hospitality House and share her findings with students in her Olympic Sport Management and Olympic Odyssey courses.

And Kim plans to attend the women鈥檚 individual finals event of her favorite summer Olympic sport, archery. 鈥淜orea has been very strong in the sport historically, and it is always fun to watch a sport where my team does well,鈥� Kim says.