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THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE BEST SPORTS MARKETING AND CONTENT FROM AUSTRALIA AND ACROSS THE GLOBE – ON A PODIUM

28-29
October 2026

Howard Smith Wharves,
Brisbane (Meanjin)

Podium sport summit 2026 has been postponed

After careful consideration, we’ve made the decision to postpone Podium Sport Summit 2026.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us on hello@podiumsportsummit.com.au

PODIUM SPORT SUMMIT IS A NATIONAL SPORTS MARKETING CONFERENCE FOR AUSTRALIA'S SPORT, MEDIA AND MARKETING COMMUNITY.

IT'S A HIGH-ENERGY, TWO-DAY EVENT BUILT FOR THE PEOPLE WHO BRING SPORT TO LIFE.

Expect global and local keynotes, industry panels, live interviews, two program tracks and plenty of space for ideas, conversations and inspiration. With a huge decade ahead for Australian sport, Podium brings the community together and builds momentum for what’s next. 

Get your ticket

Speakers

Kurt Thomson headshot

Kurt

Thomson

Freelance Creative
Gaby Barns headshot

Gaby

Barns

Freelance Creative
James Southam headshot

James

Southam

Digital Content and Engagement Manager

Gold Coast SUNS
Luke Winzar headshot

Luke

Winzar

Senior Features Producer

Collingwood Football Club
Britt Wickes headshot

Britt

Wickes

Head of Event Brand Marketing

Tennis Australia

Kayla

King

Senior Manager, Brand and Fan Development

Chicago Bulls
Kurt Thomson headshot

Kurt

Thomson

Freelance Creative
Gaby Barns headshot

Gaby

Barns

Freelance Creative
James Southam headshot

James

Southam

Digital Content and Engagement Manager

Gold Coast SUNS
Luke Winzar headshot

Luke

Winzar

Senior Features Producer

Collingwood Football Club
Britt Wickes headshot

Britt

Wickes

Head of Event Brand Marketing

Tennis Australia

Kayla

King

Senior Manager, Brand and Fan Development

Chicago Bulls
Kurt Thomson headshot

Kurt

Thomson

Freelance Creative
Gaby Barns headshot

Gaby

Barns

Freelance Creative
James Southam headshot

James

Southam

Digital Content and Engagement Manager

Gold Coast SUNS
Luke Winzar headshot

Luke

Winzar

Senior Features Producer

Collingwood Football Club
Britt Wickes headshot

Britt

Wickes

Head of Event Brand Marketing

Tennis Australia

Kayla

King

Senior Manager, Brand and Fan Development

Chicago Bulls

Location

Podium Sport Summit is held at Howard Smith Wharves in Brisbane (Meanjin), a vibrant riverside precinct right under the Story Bridge. Everything you need is within walking distance: the venue, the bars, the restaurants, the riverfront and some of Brisbane’s best hotels. Make a weekend of it and enjoy the city’s food scene, galleries, inner-city river walks and river activities.


More detailed travel information and recommendations coming soon.

WHO IT'S FOR

Podium is for the people who make sport happen in Australia – the marketers, the storytellers, strategists, creators and commercial teams across clubs, codes, leagues, agencies and brands. 

It’s also a chance for marketers outside sport to learn from an industry that leads the way in engagement, loyalty and community building.

audience

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28-29 
October 2026

Howard Smith Wharves,
Brisbane (Meanjin)

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Siilver Sponsor

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Kurt Thomson

Kurt Thomson (Kurtogram) is a Brisbane-based photographer and videographer known for his dynamic, cinematic approach to sport, movement and portraiture. After leaving a traditional 9-to-5 to pursue creative work full-time, Kurt has built a distinctive visual style grounded in precision and storytelling.

His work has taken him across Australia and internationally, collaborating with major brands and elite athletes. His client list includes Adidas, FOX Sports, the Brisbane Broncos, Brisbane Bullets, Australian Super Netball and TaylorMade Golf.

Kurt’s signature is clean, intentional lighting paired with emotive visual storytelling. Whether shooting athletes in motion or crafting commercial content, he brings a strong sense of character, craft and cinematic edge to every frame.

Gaby Barns

Gaby Barns is a freelance creative with over 13 years’ experience working across the sports and events industry. She has delivered content for major national and international events including the Australian Open, State of Origin and SailGP, and spent nearly a decade with the Gold Coast Titans leading social and content.

Gaby specialises in working within high-performance environments, capturing real moments as they happen and bringing athletes to life through content. Her work blends real-time storytelling with a deep understanding of what resonates across fast-moving digital platforms.

Luke Winzar

Luke Winzar is Senior Features Producer at the Collingwood Football Club, with a background in film, television and elite sport storytelling. After studying Film and Television at Swinburne University of Technology, he gained his first industry experience with the Melbourne Stars in 2017.

Luke joined Collingwood in 2018 as a junior video editor and camera operator and quickly rose through the ranks to become Digital Media Manager and later Head of Digital & Content. During this time, he led a team that built one of the strongest and most engaged audiences in the AFL. His leadership spanned major club milestones, including the appointment of Craig McRae in 2022 and Collingwood’s 2023 premiership season.

Following the flag, Luke directed Take the Steps (2024), a documentary that screened in more than 50 cinemas across Australia for over a month and achieved more than $1.4 million at the box office. The film’s success led the club to elevate Luke into the role of Senior Features Producer, focused on long‑form, premium storytelling for television and cinema.

Fresh off the club’s mini‑series On the Inside, Luke is currently developing two new long‑form concepts, which he will share at the Podium Sport Summit in October.

James Southam

James Southam is a Digital Content and Engagement Manager at the Gold Coast SUNS, with experience spanning sport, film and television.

After starting his career in broadcast sport and working in camera departments on Hollywood film productions, James now focuses on building compelling digital stories within Australian sport. At the SUNS, he leads content and engagement strategy, helping shape a modern club and drive growth in AFL interest on the Gold Coast.

James is passionate about pushing creative boundaries in sport and believes strong storytelling is central to the future of the industry.

Britt Wickes

Britt Wickes is a creative and commercially minded marketing leader with nearly two decades of experience building brands that connect emotionally, culturally and commercially. Across an 18-year career spanning Australia and the UK, she has worked with some of the world’s most recognised brands across sport, retail, finance and entertainment.

In her current role as Head of Event Brand Marketing at Tennis Australia, Britt leads the brand and marketing strategy behind the Australian Open and the broader Summer of Tennis. Her work focuses on how major sporting events show up in culture, combining audience insight with bold, idea-led campaigns to drive both fandom and commercial growth.

Passionate about long-term brand building, Britt specialises in evolving global brands into cultural platforms, using creativity, partnerships and experience-led thinking to unlock new value for fans, partners and the sport itself.

Kayla King

Now in her fourth season with the Chicago Bulls, Kayla King leads Brand & Fan Development with a focus on expanding the Bulls brand beyond the arena, while driving the club’s youth engagement strategy.

Her work is deeply collaboration-driven, partnering with artists performing in Chicago, global brands and international soccer clubs touring the US to create culturally relevant moments that connect the Bulls to broader audiences. With a background in brand marketing and professional athlete events, Kayla oversees large-scale, cross-functional initiatives that bring fans closer to the team beyond game day.

Her portfolio includes leading marquee moments such as Bulls Fest, Derrick Rose Night and other organisation-wide platforms that unite partnerships, content, community and live experiences. Originally raised in California, Kayla relocated to Chicago for her role and continues to shape innovative, fan-first programming that reflects both the legacy of the franchise and the culture of the city.

Chloe Dalton

Chloe Dalton is one of Australia’s few elite triple-sport athletes, with a career spanning the WNBL, Olympic Rugby Sevens and the AFLW. She won Olympic gold with the Australian Sevens team at Rio 2016 and was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for service to sport.

After transitioning to the AFLW with Carlton, Chloe founded The Female Athlete Project during the 2020 lockdown to address gender inequality in sports media. TFAP now reaches millions globally, championing women’s sport across its social platforms.

Chloe is the author of Girls Don’t Play Sport and the children’s book The A to Z of Who I Could Be. Recently retired from the AFLW following multiple back surgeries, she is now a commentator, keynote speaker, MC, and regular panellist on Channel 9’s Wide World of Sports.

Hannah Warren

As Head of Marketing at Netball Australia, Hannah Warren is a commercially astute marketing executive known for her passion, powerful storytelling and ability to drive results. She is highly regarded within the sports industry for devising brand, commercial partner and content strategies that translate to audience engagement and business growth.

Across her career, Hannah has worked with every major sporting code in Australia and advised blue-chip brands including Nissan, ANZ, AIA and Medibank. Her ability to balance creativity with commercial acumen led her spearhead the APAC expansion of global wellness technology company Therabody.

In her current role, Hannah leads the overarching brand architecture, equity and marketing strategy for netball and its products, including Woolworths NetSetGO, Suncorp Super Netball and the Origin Australian Diamonds. Since joining Netball Australia, she has reimagined the Super Netball brand and unified once-siloed marketing and creative functions into a high-performing content engine, delivering a 50% increase in social following, record broadcast growth and the most attended female sporting league in Australian history.

Zach Gayer

Zach Gayer is Director of Basketball Social Media for the Golden State Warriors, where he oversees the @Warriors social accounts, reaching more than 80 million fans worldwide. He leads the strategy, storytelling, and execution of the team’s basketball content, with a focus on building meaningful connections between the Warriors, their players, and a global fanbase.

Now in his eighth season with the organisation, Zach has played a key role in shaping how the Warriors show up across digital platforms. Prior to joining the team, he held various roles with both the National Basketball Association and Major League Soccer, building broad experience across professional sports media and content strategy.

Harrison Orchard

Harrison Orchard is Channel Strategy Lead at Cricket Australia, guiding the marketing team on when, where and how to reach fans and cricket newcomers alike. In his role, he concepts and delivers engaging marketing activations designed to build momentum and excitement all summer long, most recently across the record-breaking 2025–26 The Ashes series.

With almost seven years’ experience working in sport, Harrison has helped inspire fans of all backgrounds to get behind their teams. He brings a varied skill set shaped by roles across content, CRM and data analysis and now just wishes he could grow facial hair like Travis Head.

William Giles

William Giles is Managing Editor for Digital Content at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, better known as Wimbledon. He is responsible for how the world’s oldest tennis tournament shows up across Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and beyond.

With more than a decade of experience at the intersection of sport, storytelling and digital innovation, Will has a strong track record of engaging new audiences through creative content. His work has helped transform Wimbledon into one of the most renowned and influential sporting brands on social.

Ron Shell

Ron Shell is CEO of the National Pickleball League (NPL), Australia’s premier pickleball platform spanning professional tours, leagues, venues and global partnerships. With a background in sport, brand-building and commercial strategy, Ron has played a key role in accelerating the growth of pickleball across Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

He leads the NPL’s expansion across events, media, technology and infrastructure, with a focus on creating premium fan and player experiences. Passionate about the intersection of sport, community and entertainment, Ron is driven by building scalable, modern sporting ecosystems.