LinkedIn has signed up several Indian sports personalities, including former women’s Indian cricket captain Mithali Raj and current men’s player Rishabh Pant, as ambassadors for its professional social network.

Other high profile athletes enrolled in the ‘LinkedIn Influencer’ programme include national team and Chennai Super Kings star Ravindra Jadeja, former shooter Abhinav Bindra, former luger Shiva Keshavan, Paralympic shooter Avani Lekhara, as well as retired national soccer team legend Bhaichung Bhutia.

The Microsoft-owned platform hopes the high profile of its athlete ambassadors will drive engagement in the country as it looks to increase activity and increase its current 850 million-strong user base.

While an athlete’s sporting career paths might be familiar, many sign up to LinkedIn to reach a professional audience potentially interested in applying performance-driven principles to their own industries. Others have used the platform to build their professional network in a post-retirement career.

All of the influencer athletes will share experience and anecdotes from their career in a series of posts on the platform, offer insights into how to forge a career in sport, as well as champion various causes including mental health, diversity, and inclusion.

“LinkedIn has always been a space for everyone, and now sporting professionals have discovered the platform as a place to share different facets of who they are,” said Pooja Chhabria, APAC creator management lead at LinkedIn.

“They are not just sharing relevant sports-related content but also contributing to important topics such as leadership, teamwork, mental health, and learning from failures. By bringing eminent athletes and sports personalities on board, we are aiming for their rich experience to educate and inspire young athletes and varied professional communities. We are excited to witness these sporting legends build their professional networks, spotlight the world of sports, and unlock new opportunities for themselves and their followers.”

“When I started [my career], people could follow me on the field, but beyond that, there weren’t many means to connect [with others] on a professional level,” added Raj. “LinkedIn has removed that barrier by allowing me to plan how my off-the-field career progresses in the future. For me, LinkedIn is the perfect platform to share my experiences and opinions and connect with like-minded people, while allowing me to go beyond the sports community and reach out to a broader audience.”