Schools
Rising Up Sports Launches VikingsSportsNetwork.com—Geneva’s First-Ever Student-Run Broadcast Network
All home football games, plus soccer and volleyball broadcasts are in play as Geneva High School kicks off first season this fall.
Rising Up Sports, a company founded by alum Chad Ciesil, has announced the official launch of its first student-run online sports broadcasting network—VikingsSportsNetwork.com.
Kicking off the fall sports season in August, all Geneva Viking home football games will be broadcast online at VikingsSportsNetwork.com, the new home for Geneva High School sports broadcasts. In addition, the network will broadcast soccer and volleyball this fall, and interviews with coaches, alumni and editorial features about Geneva High School.
“As a former Viking and athlete, Geneva is a very special place to me, and I couldn’t be more excited for Vikings Sports Network to be our first launch,” said Rising Up Sports Founder, and 1989 Geneva High School graduate, Chad Ciesil. “This is particularly exciting for GHS because it’s their network. It’s not part of a third-party site, so it’s truly something the students, the school and the community can own, which was incredibly important to me and Rising Up Sports.”
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Jason Santo, GHS-TV production teacher and faculty sponsor, agrees.
“Partnering with Rising Up Sports has presented a tremendous opportunity for my students—real-world training in an educational environment where mistakes are learning opportunities and success can be widely celebrated. Who knows? The next Bob Costas, Bryant Gumbel, Mary Carillo or Hannah Storm may be roaming the halls of Geneva High.”
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Beyond simply broadcasting games, Rising Up Sports provides new opportunities through the intersection of technology and sports for students, student-athletes, schools and their communities.
● It empowers students, providing the platform, the tools, the training and the support for them to learn firsthand what it means to be sports broadcasters;
● It brings together families and community members who now have the opportunity to view games they may have otherwise missed;
● It allows student-athletes the opportunity to showcase their talents for prospective colleges, universities, and even professional sports scouts;
● It engages alumni by providing both a way to stay connected to their alma mater, but also an archive for their sports history; and
● It opens doors for schools to operationalize and monetize sports programs through advertising and sponsorships.
Principal Tom Rogers is enthusiastic about what the partnership with Rising Up Sports brings to the Geneva community.
“We have a great television production department with some fantastically talented students. Working with Chad and Rising Up Sports not only gives our students another opportunity to grow and build their skill set, but illustrates firsthand what you can achieve when you follow your dreams.”
The exposure that the athletic program and Geneva’s student-athletes earn from having their sports broadcast is an added bonus.
“We’re about to have a lot of very happy aunts, uncles and grandparents out there who now get to see their loved ones compete,” Rogers said.
For Ceisil, the network is simply a win-win-win for the students, the community and the high school.
"This announcement puts Geneva at the forefront of technology, creating new opportunities for fans, families and colleges to see Geneva's student-athletes as well as providing new educational opportunities for their students and funding opportunities for the school," he said. "I'm very excited."
About Rising Up Sports
Launched in 2012 by former college athlete and digital marketing expert Chad Ciesil, Rising Up Sports is the first and only company to provide schools with an integrated, stand-alone and student-run platform for operating their own sports network easily and at no cost to the school. With schools in Illinois and Virginia starting their own networks via Rising Up Sports, the company is encouraged by the enthusiasm and looks forward to continued expansion in the near future. For more information on how to get your school involved, and to view sample broadcasts, visit www.RisingUpSports.com.
