Many of us have felt the thrill of watching athletes perform. As they glide, jump, trip, and roll, we hold our breath, grit our teeth, and cheer. A footballer scores a goal, a sitting volleyball player blocks a serve, a relay runner passes a baton—each a display of human skill and mastery that captivates us.
Nowhere is human potential more studied, scrutinized, and celebrated than at the Olympic and Paralympic Games. To be at the top of their game, athletes must stretch their potential to unimaginable places, with support from people, systems, and resources to spur them on. But support is far from universal. Well-funded programs and access to advanced resources are not equally available to athletes across the world. It’s time to narrow that gap, supported by artificial intelligence (AI).
AI is emerging as a powerful ally in the world of sport. From expanding the ways to scout athletes worldwide, to broadening access to personalized coaching methods and supporting referee decision-making, AI has boundless potential to positively impact safety, fairness and democratization in sport.
With the launch of the Olympic AI Agenda, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is leading the way as a guiding light for the Olympic Movement. Focused on identifying opportunity areas for the responsible use of AI within sport, the Olympic AI Agenda aims to accelerate global accessibility of sport, supporting the IOC’s ambition to advance fair play, excellence, and the Olympic Games experience.
Deloitte has helped the International Olympic Committee to develop the Olympic AI Agenda through consulting and collaboration. The goal of bringing AI to the forefront of the Olympic Movement is to enhance human potential, democratize access to sport, and increase safety and fairness throughout.
- Chad Deweese, Sports Strategy, Data, and Analytics, Deloitte Consulting LLP
The potential applications of AI are so broad. Ultimately, it’s about making sure there's equitable access to AI solutions, making sure that competition remains fair, and making sure that the Olympics remain leading edge as an event
- Charlotte Rath, AI Strategy & Analytics Manager, Deloitte Consulting LLP
As part of a decade-long management consulting partnership with the IOC, Deloitte has helped to craft the Olympic AI Agenda, defining why AI matters to the world of sport and outlining how the IOC can lead on the global implementation of AI within it.
With athletes at the center of the Olympic Movement, one of the Olympic AI Agenda’s key focus areas is supporting athletes, clean competition, and safe sport. This creates a broad range of possibilities for athletes, from improving talent identification and enhancing training programs, to preventing injuries and supporting mental health, to enabling fairer contests through reducing human bias and offering real-time analysis.
A second focus area included in the Olympic AI Agenda is ensuring equal access to the benefits of AI. By making the benefits of AI available to athletes, coaches, and countries who may not have access to the best facilities and support, the IOC is committed to empowering members of the Olympic Movement to benefit from AI, wherever they are in the world.
Beyond supporting the IOC to craft the Olympic AI Agenda, Deloitte has developed a playbook to help the IOC leverage artificial intelligence, build on existing practices, and activate safe and responsible use of AI at scale. Having collaborated with academic experts, athletes, technology companies and AI leaders to evaluate over 160 opportunities and prioritize use cases for AI across the Olympic Movement, Deloitte has helped the IOC to build a strong foundation in AI leadership.
In addition, Deloitte is supporting the IOC to establish key commitments to develop a Trustworthy AI Framework; develop a multi-year AI roadmap; set up an AI engagement program; and identify learning opportunities from the Olympic Games Paris 2024 to support the creation of AI solutions.
By inclusively supporting athletes around the globe and by focusing on clean competition and safe sport, AI has the potential to reshape the landscape of possibility for the Olympic Movement.
Through collaborating and providing digital transformation consulting to the IOC, Deloitte hopes to help enable a democratized future of sport, where current and future athletes can stretch their potential, thrill fans around the world in new ways, and inspire future generations of athletes to push the boundaries of possibility even further.
Deloitte | Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Management Consulting Partner
See the possibility. See the impact.
Sports and AI share a kinship—both push human potential to new heights when guided by democratic values like fairness. The future of AI in sports will only shine when it inclusively empowers athletes while upholding the meritocratic spirit of competition.
- Varvn Aryacetas, AI Strategy & Innovation Leader, Monitor Deloitte UK