Three students from the Atlantic Technological University (ATU) in Galway, who developed a new app for sports coaches, have been honoured in a national awards programme.

The final-year Mechanical Engineering students won a Merit Award at the 2025 Enterprise Ireland Student Entrepreneur Awards for their sports coaching innovation, TactiCast.

The award-winning team — Alex Markey (Abbeyknockmoy, Co Galway), Arunas Pakalniskis (Derrymore, Co Westmeath), and Akeb Saleem (Roscrea, Co Tipperary) — developed TactiCast as part of their final-year Innovation and Enterprise module.

The project is a modern solution for sports coaches, replacing traditional tactics boards with a mobile app and battery-powered projector that allows real-time strategy sharing on the pitch or in the dressing room. David Keary, Lecturer at ATU said that the three students’ hard work, creativity, and dedication had shone through.

“Over the past 12 weeks, they have taken their idea from a sketch to a potential startup. It is a milestone for our department—this is the first time since 2016 that one of our Engineering Teams has reached the final ten of this national competition.”

The students received a €1,500 prize and presented their prototype during a two-day event hosted at Technological University Dublin. Now in its 44th year, the Student Entrepreneur Awards is one of Ireland’s longest running and most respected platforms for student innovation. The students were delighted to be involved in the event and remarked: Alex Markey from Abbeyknockmoy, Team Lead of TactiCast, said that being selected in the Top 10 of the Enterprise Ireland Student Entrepreneur Awards 2025 and receiving a Merit Award was an incredible honour.

“Showcasing TactiCast, our innovative sports coaching app developed through the Mechanical Engineering course at Atlantic Technological University, at the event in TU Dublin was a truly rewarding experience.

“It was a great opportunity to present our work, gain valuable feedback, and engage with other passionate student entrepreneurs and industry leading experts.”

Congratulating the team, Dr Orla Flynn, President of Atlantic Technological University said that the national Enterprise Ireland Student Entrepreneur awards, held annually, were extremely competitive. She also congratulated Dave Keary and all the ATU staff who supported them in their enterprise journey.

“Ireland needs graduates with strong entrepreneurial skills, and I’m delighted to see ATU’s progression in this regard,” she added.

Pictured: ATU Galway Mechanical Engineering students Arunas Pakalniskis from Westmeath, Akeb Saleem from  Tipperary and Alex Markey from Abbeyknockmoy demonstrating their TactiCast product at the Enterprise Ireland Student awards.