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Breaking into Sports: Tech Wittenborg Student Gains Valuable Industry Experience 

Hilal Bafrali Develops Hands-on Skills and Gets Industry Insights at InnoSportLab De Tongelreep

Wittenborg student Hilal Bafrali recently completed a highly enriching and dynamic internship at InnoSportLab De Tongelreep, an Eindhoven-based company specialising in technology and innovation to enhance performance in swimming sports. Hilal, originally from Turkey, is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Business Administration (HBA), with a specialisation in Sport Business Management.

From January to July, she worked as a Marketing Analyst intern at the company. In this role, she was responsible for various marketing activities, including market research focused on swimming sports in the Netherlands, as well as front-desk and administrative duties. To get the position, Hilal researched sports tech companies online, made a list and began sending out her CV until she received a positive response from InnoSportLab De Tongelreep.

The student highlights that this experience helped her develop important professional skills. “In addition to hard skills such as website design, content creation, video production and social media management, I also learned how to handle clients in direct communication, assisting them at the pools and answering their questions,” she explains.

According to Hilal, some of the most enjoyable aspects of her internship included learning to use marketing and project management tools such as Canva, WordPress, ClickUp and DaVinci Resolve. However, the experience also came with challenges, such as a costly daily commute of three hours from Apeldoorn to Eindhoven, and the fact that it was her first experience in the sports industry.

“At first, I struggled to create workable plans and to keep up with the talent in a company that is at the forefront of sports science. But I feel very lucky to have had the chance to work at InnoSportLab. I met many seasoned professionals in the sports industry, so it was a great networking opportunity,” Hilal emphasises.

The student is currently working on her graduation assignment and conducting research in the field of sports business. After graduating, she plans to look for jobs related to sustainability, sports or community development projects.

“I’m also passionate about economics and the disciplines related to it. Sociology, finance, accounting, business and philosophy are among my main areas of interest. I enjoy learning about these subjects and developing my own theories about current world dynamics.”

She encourages other students to pursue internships, emphasising that they are an investment in their future careers. “It’s great when you can intern at a company that helps you recognise your strengths and weaknesses. It contributes to your personal development and helps you correct mistakes, giving you a more rational approach that can even be useful in everyday life,” Hilal concludes.

WUP 25/08/2025 
by Ulisses Sawczuk 
©WUAS Press 

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