In a major milestone for Australian sport, Paddle Australia is proud to have joined forces with the country’s peak Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games sporting organisations to launch a national strategy aimed at building success towards Brisbane 2032 and beyond.
Bringing our collective vision of success immediately to life, Paddle Australia joined sporting leaders in Sydney today and took a pledge to ‘Win Well’ – a foundation of the strategy and a new national commitment to balancing ambitious sporting goals with cultures that are safe, fair and supportive.
Australia’s High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy represents the first time all peak bodies from across Australia’s Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games sports have united for a national high performance sport strategy. It includes Federal, State and Territory Institutes and Academies of Sport, peak Games bodies the Australian Olympic Committee, Paralympics Australia and Commonwealth Games Australia and National Sporting Organisations.
Australian Sports Commission CEO Kieren Perkins said it was a historic and significant step for Australian sport.
“This is one of the greatest periods of opportunity in Australian sporting history and teamwork can be our competitive advantage as we aim for 2032 and beyond,” Perkins said. “We all have unique roles to play, but we will all benefit by harnessing our collective strengths, talent and resources so we can deliver the best outcomes for our athletes, sports and for all of Australia.
“No sporting team can unite and inspire us like our Aussie athletes. We have a Green and Gold Runway of major sporting events over the next decade to 2032 that gives our athletes and sports the ultimate platform to perform and connect all Australians with sport like never before.
“This strategy is the collective roadmap to guide our success. It prioritises how we will tackle areas including world-leading coaching and practices, athlete development pathways, performance environments, an outstanding workforce driven by clear values and cultures.
“Our time starts now to build an inclusive and sustainable sporting system that is performance-driven, athlete-focused, exceptionally led and purposefully collaborative.”
National Performance Director Kim Crane said Paddle Australia was proud to be part of the co-design and implementation of a truly national high performance sport strategy.
Kim was an appointed member of the Executive Sponsorship Group tasked to oversee the co-design of this strategy.
“This Strategy provides inspiration and clarity for us to collectively lead and manage. It creates meaning, aligns energy, and enables action,” Crane said.
“Regardless of organisation or role, this strategy is a call to arms for us to lead in the best interests of Australia. In pledging a commitment to something greater than us as individuals or organisations, the power of a united system immediately raises the tide and athlete performance will elevate as result.”
A key measure of success outlined within Australia’s High Performance 2032+ Sport Strategy is to position Australia for its best ever Olympic and Paralympic performances at the Brisbane 2032 Games. But the strategy ultimately sets out to build ongoing, sustainable success for Australian high performance sport, before and after Brisbane 2032.
That ambition is captured by the strategy’s vision: ‘We win well to inspire Australians’.
As part of the strategy, sporting organisations signed up to a Win Well pledge and outlined their united commitment in a joint letter.
“Success in Australian sport will be to Win Well,” the joint letter states.
“This is a balanced, holistic approach, supporting our athletes and people to win in all areas of life. It is about celebrating the humanity of Australian sport, valuing physical, mental, emotional and cultural wellbeing. It is maintaining the ambition for success, but always marked with humility, integrity, fair play and Aussie grit.
“To Win Well will be a key to sustainable success, unlocking the full potential in our people and our sporting system.”
Olympic champion Jessica Fox OAM OLY welcomed the united approach to the Strategy and Win Well.
“There are so many elements that go into a good performance and it takes a village! We are always looking for the one per cent improvements and a strong, diverse, unified team makes a big difference,” Fox said.
“For me it’s about the pursuit of excellence and striving to be the best athlete, and person I can be. It takes courage to chase big dreams, deal with adversity and challenges. Win or lose, we learn so much through sport and it becomes a vehicle to share and inspire others along the way.”
