$50 MILLION BOOST IN INVESTMENT FOR AUSTRALIAN HIGH PERFORMANCE SPORT

Wednesday, 24 October 2018

$50 MILLION BOOST IN INVESTMENT FOR AUSTRALIAN HIGH
PERFORMANCE SPORT

 

24 October 2018

 

Minister for Sport Bridget McKenzie has announced a $50
million boost in high performance sport investment over the next two years as
Australia builds towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
 
Senator McKenzie made the announcement this morning at
Rowing Australia in Canberra, where the leadership hub of Australia’s high
performance sport system, the AIS, is located.
 
The added investment will enable the AIS to invest in
initiatives, programs and resourcing for the collective benefit of achieving
Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games outcomes, as well as supplementing
grants already issued directly to sports.
 
“This investment will allow our high performance athletes to
achieve their dreams by competing against the world’s best,” Senator McKenzie
said.
 
“The AIS, on behalf of the Liberal National Government,
already distributes about $100 million annually in direct grants to high
performance sports. This additional investment is about giving the AIS and
Australian sport an overall boost that will have broad and lasting impact.

“High performance athletes are role models for our younger
athletes and their success encourages more Australian kids to participate in
sport.”
 
“The AIS has launched an exciting new strategy that aims to
ensure Australian sport is at the forefront of ethical sporting performance and
is helping our athletes inspire the nation through their international success.

“This investment is not just about the immediately foreseeable
results at events such as the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics, but also the
long-term development of Australian sport’s pipeline of emerging athletes and
leaders.

“It aligns with the Coalition Government’s release of Sport
2030 earlier this year which sets out a long-term roadmap for Australian sport
and physical activity at all levels.”
 
Sport Australia Chair John Wylie welcomed the investment.

“On behalf of the Sport Australia Board and the AIS, we
welcome this investment and the responsibility to keep growing Australian
sport.”

Sport Australia CEO Kate Palmer said the AIS, in partnership
with sports, will invest in new and expanded programs that are critical to
Australia’s international competitiveness.

“The AIS Applied Technology and Innovation team will focus
on solving the big problems confronting Australian sport with research,
engineering and data analytics,” Palmer said.

“There will be greater investment in developing the very
best sport leaders within our system, including coaches, high performance staff
and sport medicine practitioners so that this expertise is spread far and wide
around the country and more directly available to athletes when and where they
need them”.

“Athlete wellbeing services and support will be greatly
enhanced under the national leadership of the AIS. The AIS will lead and assist
with embedding more expertise directly into sports, assisting athletes during
and after their sporting careers so they are better engaged with their
communities.

ENDS

Media
Contact:

Jonathan Hawkes  0434 660 801 | jonathan.hawkes@health.gov.au

Alex Hall : 0407 743 752 | Alexandra.hall@health.gov.au