WashU Olin’s BIG IdeaBounce: 13 Startups In The Business Of Health Compete For The $50K Top Prize

Team: SPARC Sports

School Affiliation: Washington University Olin Business School

Description:

A mental performance mobile platform for athletes

Problem:

There is a critical gap in college athletics with the resources provided for mental performance, with 78% of student-athletes feeling their programs fail to provide adequate resources for handling the psychological challenges of competition. Despite the increasing recognition of mental strength as a key factor in peak performance, only 65 out of 253 Division I athletic departments offer mental performance or health services. The existing support is severely limited, with an alarming ratio of one mental health professional for every 1,900 athletes, making personalized guidance nearly impossible. Additionally, the high cost of private sessions—averaging over $250 per hour—renders professional support inaccessible to many struggling athletes. Compounding the issue, 40% of athletes cite stigma and embarrassment as primary barriers to seeking help, further limiting their access to essential mental training resources.

Solution:

Our solution is to normalize mental performance training at every level of sport by democratizing access to sport psychology tools through technology. SPARC SPORTS is an AI-driven platform designed by elite sports psychologists and NCAA athletes to enhance focus, resilience, and mental toughness. Backed by cutting-edge research, SPARC acts as an on-the-go sports psychologist, delivering personalized training through interactive modules and real-time progress tracking. By making mental performance support accessible, affordable, and stigma-free, SPARC ensures that every athlete can train their mind as rigorously as they train their body.

Market:

These mental performance tools apply to executives, entrepreneurs, military, esports, and performers, tapping into the $13B+ mental wellness and performance industry, with the sports tech industry growing at 26%. Our specific target market is the 540,000 NCAA student athletes, where our market research has shown this problem is most significant.

Competition:

SPARC SPORTS is an AI-driven mental training platform that replicates the experience of working with a real sports psychologist through interactive exercises, structured video lessons, and personalized training modules. Unlike traditional mental health apps, which primarily focus on general well-being through passive meditation, SPARC is built specifically for athletes. It goes beyond audio-based guided meditation and visualization exercises offered by competitors like Calm, Champion’s Mind, and Rewire Fitness. Instead, SPARC provides actionable, structured, and tangible training tools that allow athletes to actively develop focus, resilience, and mental toughness in real-time.

Additionally, SPARC introduces a personalized scrollable feed providing real-time recommendations and continuous engagement. While the gold standard in mental performance remains working directly with a sports psychologist, their limited availability and high costs ($300+ per session) make them inaccessible to most athletes. SPARC is designed as an affordable, on-the-go solution that provides high-level mental performance training at a fraction of the cost.

Value Creation:

SPARC SPORTS is positioned for long-term sustainability through multiple revenue streams and measurable impact in the mental performance industry. The platform generates revenue through:

B2B Licensing Model – Selling SPARC as a subscription-based platform to universities and athletic programs, allowing entire teams to benefit from structured mental training at scale.
B2C Subscription Plans – Offering individual athletes affordable access to AI-driven training, interactive modules, and personalized content.
Premium One-on-One Coaching – Enabling athletes to book live sessions with certified sports performance coaches.

SPARC delivers measurable impact by improving mental health and mental performance, allowing everyone to bring out their best self. With a scalable tech-driven model, SPARC is not just another meditation app, it is the future of sports-specific mental training that actively enhances performance and well-being.

The Team:

Sergiu Celebidachi, MBA, 2025