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Geelong-based sports technology company Zena Sport has developed the world’s most advanced breast and rib protection vest for women and girls who play contact sport such as football, AFL and rugby.

The Victorian Government is backing its development with Victorian Minister for Industry and Innovation Ben Carroll announcing that Breakthrough Victoria is investing $148,000 in Zena Sport.

Breakthrough Victoria is an independent company that manages a $2 billion investment fund set up by the Victorian Government to make Victoria a global innovation leader. The company supports people and innovations from the first spark of an idea right through to companies with ambitions for large scale growth and brings together investors, research institutions, governments and companies to commercialise great ideas and innovations that create jobs in emerging industries

Zena Sport was established in 2018 by Donna Johnson and her partner former AFL team captain Brad Johnson having seen the need for inclusive protective gear for women and girls who play contact sport.

Zena Sport Chief Executive and founder Donna Johnson shared “this investment gives us the opportunity to scale and grow our brand globally. Our Mission is to assist a new generation of females to perform beyond what they thought was possible and this investment will do exactly that.”

The innovative chest protection vest offers an added layer of injury prevention for women and girls who play contact sport.

The Zena Z1 Vest is made from a liquid polyurethane foam that is injected directly into the fabric of the vest and moulded to create a single, seamless barrier between the ball or elbow and the breast tissue or ribs.

Designed in collaboration with Deakin University, the vest absorbs the initial impact of a blow and distributes the energy over a larger area to reduce the likelihood of injury. According to research undertaken by Zena, breast injury is an issue that lacks awareness despite the high instance of contact-induced injury among female athletes.

In addition to helping the company expand into more Australian retailers and key sports markets like the United States and Europe, the investment will also create more than 12 new jobs in the Geelong region.

The Breakthrough Victoria investment comes after the company was selected to participate in a sportstech focused accelerator program funded by the State Government’s startup agency LaunchVic.

Breakthrough Victoria delivers a $2 billion fund driving investment in key industry sectors like health and life sciences, advanced manufacturing, agri-food, clean energy and digital technologies.

In addition to Breakthrough Victoria, the Government is providing targeted industry investments to drive innovation through $5 million for LaunchVic’s Alice Anderson Fund to support more women-led startups and the $15 million Industry R&D Infrastructure Fund to incentivise local business to increase their R&D activity.

Breakthrough Victoria Chief Executive Grant Dooley noted “Zena Sport saw a gap in the market and seized the chance to develop the world’s only scientifically tested chest protection vest for women and girls in contact sports – they are an example of what we look for in our investments.”

More information on Zena Sports

More information on Breakthrough Victoria 

More information on LaunchVic

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