World Rowing and Japan Sport Council Convene Global Leaders at Virtual Sports Forum Plus in Lausanne

World Rowing and the Japan Sport Council co-hosted the 3rd Virtual Sports Forum Plus at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, gathering leaders from across the Olympic movement, international federations, and the esports and gaming industries to explore how virtual sport is reshaping the future of sporting engagement worldwide.

The forum was also held with the support of Think Sport as the innovation partner, and the Lausanne Olympic Capital Foundation as the main contributor.

Held on 17 March 2026, the full-day forum brought together representatives from more than 45 organisations and more than 140 representatives, including the IOC, UCI, World Rowing, FIBA, World Triathlon, World Taekwondo, and leading technology partners within the All Japan delegation such as Fujitsu and Konami, to examine the intersection of digital innovation, high performance sport, and community impact.

“Since its launch in 2024, the Virtual Sports Forum has become a platform for dialogue across sport, technology, and innovation. But our purpose today is not simply to observe change; it is to help shape it. Virtual sports are evolving rapidly. They create new opportunities for accessibility, participation, engagement, education, and performance. They also raise important questions about governance, credibility, inclusion, athlete pathways, technology, and social impact. These are precisely the questions that require serious collaboration across sectors and across borders. This is why today matters.” Jean-Christophe Rolland, World Rowing President & IOC Member

“We are pleased to have held the Virtual Sports Forum for a second year and, in this fifth year since the Tokyo 2020 Games, to have advanced it with the Forum Plus here in Lausanne. Bringing global sporting leaders together reaffirmed the strong potential of virtual sport and deepened our shared insight. Our aim now is to build this momentum into a truly international alliance, applying high performance expertise to broader life performance fields to help address global challenges. Together with World Rowing, we look forward to strengthening our international strategic partnership.” ASHIDATE Satoshi, Japan Sport Council President & CEO

A Defining Moment for Sport

The Virtual Sports Forum Plus marks a pivotal moment in the evolution of sport. As virtual rowing, cycling, triathlon, and other disciplines attract millions of participants globally, many of whom would never set foot in a traditional sporting environment, international federations are increasingly recognising the need to develop coherent, science-backed frameworks for virtual sport that sit alongside, and complement, their traditional programmes.

The forum opened with remarks by Sébastien Griesmar, Director of the Lausanne Olympic Capital Foundation, and World Rowing President Jean-Christophe Rolland, who spoke on behalf of the strong partnership with Japan Sport Council. Their instructions set the stage for a programme designed to draw out concrete insights and actionable strategies from leading nations and organisations at the forefront of high-performance sport.

Global Case Studies and IF Perspectives

Morning sessions featured international federation perspectives from the UCI, World Rowing, and World Triathlon, alongside a rich case‑study session examining high‑performance innovation in Australia, Singapore, and Japan. Dr. KUKIDOME Takeshi, Vice President of the Japan Sport Council and High Performance Director at the Japan High Performance Sport Center, emphasised the importance of the theme From High Performance to Life Performance, highlighting how investment in sports science, technology, and cross‑sector collaboration is creating pathways that carry the benefits of elite sport into broader community participation.

World Rowing’s own presentation, delivered by Council Member and Indoor Rowing Commission Chair Filip Ljubicic and Indoor Rowing Manager Juliette Duchemin, outlined the federation’s strategic vision for the discipline as a driver of global participation growth through worldwide in person events, virtual events, and special programmes.

Gaming, Digital Technology, and Physical Sport

A centrepiece panel discussion examined how gaming and digital environments are being applied to physical sports, with insights from MyWhoosh, Concept2, and Refract Technologies. Their discussion explored the convergence of competitive gaming culture with athletic training and performance, and the growing opportunity to reach new and younger audiences through virtual formats.

Fujitsu, one of the leading Japanese technology innovation corporations, provided a demonstration of their new cutting-edge Human Movement Analytics (HMA) on the indoor rowing machine. HMA is an AI-driven piece of technology that analyzes athletes and equipment in real time, providing feedback on various facets of the rowing stroke.

Sports Science, Esports, and Social Impact

The afternoon programme featured a keynote from Dr. Jane Thornton, Medical and Scientific Director of the IOC, who examined esports through the lens of sports science and medicine, a signal of how seriously the Olympic movement is engaging with the health dimensions of this rapidly evolving space.

The Japan Sport Council, the Japan eSports Union, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government highlighted how virtual sports and eSports represent a new frontier in Japan’s sports policy, with a unified all‑Japan approach driving real value and positive change. Moderated by SAKATA Hiroshi, Director of International Engagement and Information and Head of the Virtual Sports Research Office at the Japan Sport Council, the session outlined a progression from high‑performance sport to a stronger system-wide performance model, ultimately leading to life performance that benefits society as a whole.

The forum concluded with a panel discussion on creating social impact through collaboration with local communities, featuring Vincent Gaillard, Executive Director of World Rowing, alongside representatives from World Taekwondo and the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games Organising Committee. Moderated by YAMADA Etsuko, Head of International Sport for Development at the Japan Sport Council, the discussion underscored that the greatest potential of virtual sport may lie not in elite competition, but in expanding access to sport for all. 

The Lausanne Declaration

The forum culminated in the signing of the Lausanne Declaration, co-signed by World Rowing President Jean-Christophe Rolland and Japan Sport Council President & CEO ASHIDATE Satoshi. The Declaration underlines World Rowing and the Japan Sports Council’s commitment to shape, expand and safeguard the future of virtual sport.