SportHack 2025
Innovation hackathon | 11/11 - 15/11 Online & Onsite | Ideas in Motion!

Challenge by Rimi Riga Marathon - Leading the Way in Sustainable Sports

Challenge by Rimi Riga Marathon - Leading the Way in Sustainable Sports

Problem Statement:

Every event leaves a footprint - even a marathon. The Rimi Riga Marathon has already taken pioneering steps by becoming the first national sports event in the Baltics to assess its environmental impact through a CO₂e audit, compensate for emissions via local projects, improve production processes, and educate society under the Run for Future program. Yet sustainability is a moving target: as expectations rise and technologies advance, the challenge is how to go even further in reducing environmental impact, while also using the Rimi Riga Marathon as a platform to inspire runners, partners, and society to embrace greener lifestyles.

Challenge Objective:

Develop fresh ideas and innovative practices that can further minimize the environmental footprint of the Rimi Riga Marathon and strengthen its role as a leader in sustainable sports. This could involve new approaches to race-day logistics, smarter use of materials and waste reduction, digital solutions that cut resource use, or partnerships that amplify the marathon’s sustainability impact across Latvia and beyond.

Expected Outcomes:

We are looking for forward-thinking concepts that take sustainability to the next level. Solutions should show how the marathon can not only reduce its footprint but also set new benchmarks for the sports industry, motivating participants, fans, and partners to adopt more sustainable habits in everyday life.

Data Provided by Partner:

  • Insights from the sustainability audit conducted with the University of Latvia researcher Jānis Brizga
  • Information on current sustainability measures and the Run for Future program
  • Rimi Riga Marathon WEB page: https://rimirigamarathon.com/en/sustainability/

Support and Resources:

  • Mentors from the Rimi Riga Marathon organizing team.

Challenge Experts

Arta Beitane

Mentor / Latvia
Early-stage investor, driven to support founders from day one. Had my fair share of sports growing up; these days into endurance sports, though purely recreationally.
Skills:   Business   Sport  

Gatis Gudelis

Mentor / Latvija
I am an enthusiast of IoT and connectivity technologies. My professional career has developed from remote reading of various energy meters to becoming the B2B product manager at Tele2 Latvia. I have …
Skills:   Business   Tech  

JORDANE CZAPSKI

Mentor / Lithuania
I’m Jordane, and I’ve spent 18 years at Decathlon working across retail, logistics, supply, digital, and production, in France, China, Thailand, Latvia, and across the Baltic countries. I love conne…
Skills:   Business   Sport  

Marina Petrakova

Mentor / Latvia
I help founders navigate the development of their business idea through product, design, AI tools, various technologies, and marketing. Additional expertise in Medicine, Neuroscience, Behavioral Scie…
Skills:   Business   Design   Science   Tech  

Marta Rautenschild

Mentor / Latvia
I believe that capital follows character. Trust, friendship, and long-term collaboration build more value than any spreadsheet ever could. If we don’t enjoy talking, there’s no reason to talk busine…
Skills:   Business  

Rebeka Ozolniece

Mentor / Latvia
With a background as an athlete, I began my professional journey in 2021 as Head of Communications for the Latvian Athletics Association. In 2022, I represented Latvia at the European Athletics Young…
Skills:   Sport  

Reinholds Pirags

Mentor / Latvia
I’m one of the creators behind HackMotion, an innovative golf wearable transforming how players understand and improve their golf swing. Our team has grown HackMotion into a global sports tech brand …
Skills:   Business   Sport  

Teams related to this challenge

12 - GreenRun Insight

Calvin Saragih     3     118        2
Challenges:   Main Challenge - Sustainable Sport   Challenge by Rimi Riga Marathon - Leading the Way in Sustainable Sports  
Idea stage:   Work on progress project  
Team status:   Looking for team members  
Looking for additional roles:   Design   Science   Sport   Tech  

11 - NEMO - Integration Simplified!

Prashanth Poli     4     73        3
Challenges:   Main Challenge - AI-Powered Sport   Main Challenge - Sustainable Sport   Challenge by Decathlon - Help Your Oma to Be a Champion!   Challenge by Rimi Riga Marathon - Leading the Way in Sustainable Sports  
Idea stage:   New Idea  
Team status:   Looking for team members  
Looking for additional roles:   Design   Science   Tech  

06 - SmartRecover

Samanta Kelmere     5     189        3
Challenges:   Main Challenge - AI-Powered Sport   Main Challenge - Sustainable Sport   Challenge by Decathlon - Help Your Oma to Be a Champion!   Challenge by Latvian Olympic Committee - Smarter Insights from Performance Data   Challenge by Rimi Riga Marathon - Leading the Way in Sustainable Sports  
Idea stage:   New Idea  
Team status:   Full team  
Looking for additional roles:   Business