In a city like Dubai that’s often defined by scale and ambition, it is easy to overlook something basic: access. Access to opportunity, to mentorship, and sometimes simply to safety. In Dubai, where private initiative often complements public ambition, entrepreneurs are increasingly stepping into roles that extend beyond business.
For Jason Grannum, a former professional footballer turned technology investor based in Dubai, that role has taken a practical form through his partnership with Sep Academy, a swimming academy focused on both grassroots inclusion and elite development.
We spoke to Grannum about why access to sport matters, and why swimming in particular has become central to his community work.
Q: Why did swimming become the focus of your involvement rather than football, given your background?
Jason Grannum: Football shaped my early life, but swimming addresses something very fundamental. It is not just a sport. It is a life skill.
Dubai is a coastal city with a strong culture around beaches and pools. In that environment, swimming is directly linked to safety. For some families, especially those on lower incomes, structured lessons are not always affordable. That creates a gap which has real consequences.
Supporting access to swimming is not primarily about trying to produce champions. It is about giving children confidence and security in the water.
Q: What does your partnership with Sep Academy actually involve in practice?
Grannum: It is very simple. We sponsor free swimming lessons for children whose families would not otherwise be able to afford them.
The idea is not to create a one-off event or a symbolic programme. It is to cover the cost of structured training over time, so children can learn properly and consistently. That includes qualified coaching, safe facilities and progression pathways.
Sport only works when it is sustained. One lesson does not build skill. Repetition does.
Q: Why is this particularly important in a city like Dubai?
Grannum: Dubai is global and diverse. Families arrive from all over the world, often for work, and not everyone arrives with the same resources.
In that context, access becomes uneven very quickly. Private academies can provide excellent sports training, but they are not automatically accessible to every child.
If you want a city to feel cohesive, you need shared experiences. Sport creates that. It allows children from different backgrounds to train together, learn discipline together and build friendships that cut across economic lines.
Q: You have also supported talented swimmers from under-resourced countries. How did that come about?
Grannum: Through Sep Academy we began to see another need. There are talented young swimmers in parts of the world where facilities, coaching and exposure are limited. Ability is there, but opportunity is not.
In some cases, we have helped sponsor travel, competition access and further development for swimmers who would otherwise struggle to progress. That might mean supporting a training camp abroad or helping cover travel costs to compete.
The aim is not to extract talent, but to give it a platform.
Q: That sounds like a shift from local inclusion to international development. How do you balance the two?
Grannum: They are connected.
Local access is about safety and opportunity. International development is about fairness. Both come back to the same principle. Talent and potential are widely distributed. Opportunity is not.
Dubai is uniquely positioned to act as a bridge. It has infrastructure, coaching standards and connectivity. If private individuals can help create pathways, even in small numbers, that can change trajectories.
Q: You built your career in highly competitive industries. What draws you to this kind of community involvement?
Grannum: Sport shaped how I think about discipline and responsibility. You do not succeed alone. Coaches, teammates and mentors all play a role.
When I look at business success, I see the same pattern. People develop when they are given structure and belief.
Supporting swimming is a way of giving that structure back. It is concrete. It is measurable. A child either learns to swim or does not. A talented athlete either gains exposure or does not.
I am not interested in gestures. I prefer initiatives where you can see the outcome.
Q: What would you say to other private individuals or entrepreneurs in Dubai who want to contribute?
Grannum: Start with something practical.
In a city like Dubai, there is enormous capacity. The question is not whether support is possible, but where it is focused.
It does not need to be large scale. It needs to be consistent. If each entrepreneur supports one programme properly, over time that creates a network of opportunity.
Public institutions cannot do everything alone. Private individuals benefit from the stability and infrastructure of a city. There is a responsibility that comes with that.
Q: Finally, what do you hope this partnership achieves over the long term?
Grannum: On a basic level, I hope more children feel safe in the water.
Beyond that, I hope some of them discover a talent they did not know they had. And for those coming from under-resourced countries, I hope we can remove one or two barriers that stand between ability and progress.
If a handful of young swimmers gain confidence, discipline and opportunity because of this, then it is worthwhile.
Sport gave me direction at an early age. Supporting access to it feels like a natural continuation of that journey.
