The Turnbull Government will boost high performance sport funding with an additional $10 million as part of a targeted drive towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The extra investment will be injected across 18 Olympic and Paralympic sporting disciplines, supporting hundreds of athletes bound for Tokyo 2020.
The Turnbull Government has previously boosted funding towards the 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, as well as the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
We’ve announced more than $101 million in direct high performance sport funding for the 2017-18 financial year.
The $10 million boost announced today will help ensure our Australian sports and athletes have the best support to reach their potential at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics.
It will help some exciting new and returning sports to get a head start on their Olympic preparations, including Surfing, Skate, Triathlon Mixed Team Relay and Softball.
Australian athletes show great promise in these sports, with Aussie women recently claiming all three podium spots on the World Surf League and Australia winning the Mixed Relay Triathlon world championships.
Support to team sports will be increased, with a focus on women’s teams. Australia’s Olympic gold medal-winning Women’s Rugby Sevens team will share in extra funding, along with women’s Football, Water Polo and Softball.
Australia’s Paralympians will be supported, who as a team have been consistent performers on the international stage, finishing top five on the medal table for seven consecutive Summer Paralympics, since 1992.
The funding will provide support to some of Australia’s best Paralympic prospects, including Wheelchair Rugby and Para-Canoeing as well as integrated and multi-medal programs such as Swimming, Cycling and Rowing.
Smaller combat sports such as boxing, judo, taekwondo and fencing will also benefit.
The AIS will be responsible for this funding and provide advice to monitor the ongoing distribution of these funds. It will be invested in the areas of coaching, training environments, sport science, and competition.
I also want to congratulate all the winners from AIS Sport Performance Awards last night, including Australia’s women’s football team the Matildas who won the Public Choice Team of the Year, with star striker Sam Kerr awarded Sports Personality of the Year and Matildas coach, Alen Stajcic, recognised as Coach of the Year.
The Winter Olympics and Paralympics and Gold Coast Commonwealth Games will be benchmark events next and it’s promising to see our best athletes in superb form, led by Female Athlete of the Year, hurdler Sally Pearson, and Male Athlete of the Year, snowboarder Scott James.
The Turnbull Government is committed to supporting Australia’s sporting ambitions, from grassroots participation through our elite international representatives.
We want more Australians to play sport and for our professional teams and athletes to inspire even more to get involved.
The full list of sports to benefit from additional $10 million funding includes: Boxing; Canoe and para-canoe; Cycling; Diving; Fencing; Football women’s; Judo; Rowing; Rugby Sevens men’s and women’s teams; Sailing; Skate; Softball; Surfing; Swimming; Taekwondo; Triathlon; Water Polo women’s; Wheelchair rugby.