Tag Archives: Australian Institute of Sport

AFTNews, AFTNews, Features Australia/NZ, Features Australia/NZ

AIS program targets gender diversity for coaches and executives

Former Australian cricketer Shelley Nitschke and two-time Olympic water polo representative Bec Rippon are among 32 women from 20 sports selected for the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) Talent Program, which is designed to address the under-representation of women in coaching and executive roles in high performance sport.

In a press release issued on 17 March 2022, Australia’s Minister for Sport Richard Colbeck announced the 16 coaches and 16 executives who have been selected for the intensive Women Leaders in Sport (WLIS) professional development programs funded by the Australian Government’s Office for Women and Sport Australia.

The AIS Talent program has been designed to be a catalyst for identified women leaders to further progress their career potential in sport, this year with an emphasis on coaching and executive positions.

“We want the participants in this program to grow their leadership presence as individuals, but also to be influential in shifting mind-sets and behaviours in sport and broader community,” Minister Colbeck said.

“The Australian Government has been strong and consistent in our approach to increasing opportunities for women and girls at all levels of sport, from participation in community sport through to the leaders running our organisations.

“We’ve made no secret of our aspiration to have a greater proportion of women in leadership roles in Australian sport and it’s encouraging to see the wide range of sports and organisations engaging with this AIS Talent program.

“The next decade in particular, leading up to the 2032 Brisbane Games, will be one of the most exciting chapters in Australian sporting history. It’s crucial that we have the right talent, diversity and balance within the leadership ranks of our sporting system, whether it be in the boardroom or in the sporting arena.”

This is the second time the AIS Talent Program has had a high performance coach focus, with alumni including two-time Olympic gold medallist Katrina Powell, the first woman coach of the Hockeyroos in 43 years. Like Katrina, former Australian allrounder Shelley Nitschke has also successfully transitioned from athlete to coach and is currently at the Women’s World Cup in New Zealand as the Assistant Coach of the Australian Cricket Team.

“I’m honoured to have been accepted into the AIS Talent Program alongside some amazing women from across the sporting sector and I’m looking forward to connecting with them and getting stuck into the program,” Nitschke said.

“The program presents a wonderful opportunity for me to further myself both personally and professionally and I’m hoping it will help taking my coaching to a new level.”

Running in conjunction to the AIS Women High Performance Coach Talent Program will be a program focused on supporting and elevating women in executive positions in sport.

Debbie Savage, the National High Performance Manager at Skate Australia, said: ” I’m thrilled to be selected for the AIS Executive Talent Program. It’s an exciting opportunity to be afforded time to develop my own professional capabilities as an executive leader in Skateboarding, whilst strengthening my network with other amazing women in the high performance sport system who are sharing a similar journey.”

AIS Director Matti Clements said: “The calibre of participants selected for this year’s AIS Talent Program is proof of the incredible skill and experience that already exists in Australian high performance sport.

“But there is no hiding from the fact that women are still under-represented in both coaching and executive ranks. I would like to thank the Australian Government and Office for Women for giving the AIS resources to help change this and look forward to seeing the AIS Talent participants help drive greater diversity in Australian sport.”

For more information about the AIS Talent Program, visit the AIS website here.

 

2022 AIS Female Sport Executive Talent Program: 

Megan Carr, Female Engagement Manager VIC, Golf Australia

Christine Harman, General Counsel and Company Secretary, Cricket Australia

Rana Hussain, Inclusion and Diversity Manager, Cricket Australia

Dee Jennings, Performance and Planning Manager, Hockey Australia

Cassie Lindsey, Inclusion and Diversity Manager, Geelong Football Club

Jane Louise Woodlands-Thompson, Director/ Consultant, Activebods

Sarah Luttrell, Senior Legal Counsel, Tennis Australia

Jane McGough, General Manager – Consumer, Community and Marketing, Gold Coast SUNS Football Club

Tracey Menzies-Stegbauer, Athlete Wellbeing and Engagement Manager, Gymnastics Australia

Carolyn Morrison, Performance Services Program Manager, Western Australian Institute of Sport

Jenni Thom, HR and Finance Manager, Shooting Australia

Jodie Newton, Acting Chief Executive Officer, South Australian Cricket Association

Melanie Purkiss, Athlete Wellbeing and Engagement Manager, Athletics Australia

Rachel Ratini, General Manager – Sport Operations, Equestrian Australia

Debbie Savage, National High Performance Manager, Skate Australia

Rebekah Webster, General Manager- Vixens, Performance & Pathways, Netball Victoria & the Melbourne Vixens

 

2022 AIS Female High Performance Coach Talent Program: 

Ash Ankudinoff, Coach, SASI

Alison Bombardier, Manager and Assistant Coach Para Alpine Ski Team, Snow Australia

Belinda Cox Gymnastics, Manager – Pathways and Performance, NSW Trampoline

Taís de Morais Rochel, Fencing Coach/ Personal Trainer, Australian Fencing Federation

Rebecca Dicello, Head Endurance Cycling Coach, NSWIS

Lucy Glanville, 2022 Youth/Junior World Championships Head Coach, Australian Biathlon Association

Belinda Goss, Cycling Coach, TIS

Harriet May Jones, Head Diving Coach, VIS

Shelley Nitschke, Assistant Coach – Australian Women’s Team, Cricket Australia

Kerry O’Sullivan, AFLW Development Coach, West Coast Eagles Football Club

Catherine Paice, Strength and Conditioning Coach, Football Queensland/QAS

Rebecca Rippon, Women’s Water Polo Head Coach, NSWIS

Jaime Swavley, Sailing Coach, Australian Sailing

Michelle Tickner, Head Coach and Founder, Team 360 Performance

Christine Voge, Assistant Coach, Sunshine Coast Lightning Netball Club

Taryn Woods, Associate, Communication and Stakeholder Engagement, Water Polo Australia

AFTNews, AFTNews, Olympics

AIS congratulates Olympians for inspirational Games

Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) CEO Peter Conde said the success of the Australian team at the Tokyo Olympic Games is a testament not only to our outstanding athletes and coaches, but also the collaboration and teamwork within the nation’s high performance sector.

Australia finished the delayed Games in Japan sixth place on the medal tally and equalled the country’s best ever Olympics in Athens 2004 by winning 17 gold medals, as well as seven silver and 22 bronze.  An amazing achievement for a nation of our size.

The achievements from Tokyo included Australia’s best performance in the pool since 1956, inaugural medals in skateboarding, surfing and BXM Freestyle, the first beach volleyball medal since the Sydney Games, the end of a three-decade medal drought in men’s boxing, the Boomers first ever medal in basketball and some outstanding performances and medals in Athletics.

“This is an historic result for sport in Australia and I would like to congratulate every athlete, coach and performance support staff member for an inspirational 19 days in Japan,” Mr Conde said.

“Never before has there been a Games surrounded by so many challenges and uncertainty. Our athletes showed incredible resilience and courage and I couldn’t be happier to see them rewarded by this success.

“Big lessons were learnt following the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and I am proud of the leadership role the AIS has played in helping to unite the high performance sector and support our athletes. Podiums are a measure of success but so is having our athletes and teams as such an incredible source of pride and inspiration for the nation.

“The AIS Gold Medal Ready Program represents the wonderful legacy of Olympic sport, with more than 40 former Olympic and Paralympic gold medal winning athletes and coaches mentoring our current team in the lead up to Tokyo.

“The evolution and advancement of the inaugural National High Performance Sport Strategy, signed by all states and territory sporting bodies in 2018, has strengthened collaborative partnerships across the whole sporting sector and provided a collective vision for sport in Australia. I would like to thank all our partners in the National Institute Network for their hard work and contribution to the success we have seen in Japan.”

“It’s fantastic for the future to see that 13 of the record equalling 17 medals won featured at least one athlete making their Olympic debut. We also saw athletes such as Rohan Browning and Peter Bol make huge statements on the world stage, showing that their best is yet to come,” Mr Conde said.

“The future of Australian sport is looking bright and the AIS is proud to play a part in supporting our athletes as the focus turns to Paris and beyond. Through Federal Government investment, the AIS provides $14 million per annum in direct support to athletes through dAIS grants, and in the lead up to Tokyo. Thanks to the Australian Government, this funding will continue through to 2024, along with significant funding support for National Sporting Organisations to provide coaching, performance support, international competition, performance pathways programs and wellbeing programs, enabling the AIS to carry on supporting Australian high performance sport.”

“On behalf of everyone at the AIS, I would like to congratulate Matt Carroll as CEO and Ian Chesterman as Chef de Mission and the entire Australian Olympic Committee. There were many who doubted whether the Games could or should go ahead, and the work done by the AOC to get our athletes to Tokyo and keep them safe is extraordinary.  Their determination to provide an outstanding performance-focused environment at the Games was pivotal.

“While we will miss tuning in every day to see our Australian Olympians achieve the remarkable, the good news is that we are just over a week away from the start of the Paralympic Games. On behalf of the AIS, I wish all our Paralympians preparing for Tokyo good luck and we can’t wait to see you perform on the world stage.”

Source: AFTNN