Para athletes training for the Brisbane Paralympic Games will share $427,000 in the next round of the Para Athlete Barrier Fund, with Sports and Communications Minister Anika Wells to confirm the funding in a speech at the Queensland Media Club at lunchtime on Thursday (5 November), Brisbane Times reported.
The funds will support 144 sportspeople competing in 22 disciplines, with grants of up to $4000 going to athletes in sports including wheelchair rugby, table tennis, climbing and taekwondo.
"These investments aren't simply removing financial barriers, they are unlocking potential and helping more Australians achieve extraordinary things," Ms Wells will tell the audience, according to Brisbane Times.
What the Fund Covers
The Australian Sports Commission describes the Para Athlete Barriers Fund as a grant program to support categorised athletes to overcome individual barriers to their progression or performance in Para sports. Eligible costs include travel to domestic competition or training, accessing coaching, costs associated with athlete classification, carer support and childcare whilst training or competing. The grant cannot be used for equipment purchases, engineering or equipment maintenance.
The fund was born out of the nation's biggest ever Para-system survey, which identified a range of barriers stopping athletes reaching their medal potential, the commission said when it named the first recipients. The first round, held in partnership with Paralympics Australia, supported 122 athletes across 18 sports.
Among them was Ben Tudhope, who used the grant ahead of the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, where he won silver in snowboard cross and bronze in banked slalom, according to the commission. "Knowing that I have the backing to train and compete properly helps reduce stress, improve confidence and boost motivation during long periods away from home," Tudhope said. AIS Director Matti Clements said: "For many athletes, this support is the difference between staying in the system and stepping away."
Road to Brisbane 2032
Ms Wells will describe the Brisbane 2032 Games as a collective North Star to guide athletes on their "journey from playground to podium", Brisbane Times reported. Added to previously committed funds, the investment will support 68 high-performance programs, up from 54, and seven more national teams, including lacrosse and blind football.
"More than 1000 athletes across 41 sports are receiving direct support through … grants paid directly to athletes," Ms Wells will say. "Elite athletes should be able to focus on training, competing and performing, not wondering how they are going to cover expenses."
The federal government says it is investing more than half a billion dollars over the next two years into Australia's high-performance sports system. The fund is a key initiative of the Australian Government-funded Para Uplift, which the commission says has established dedicated Para Sport Units in every state and territory and increased the funding for most national sport organisation Para programs by 75 per cent.
In remarks provided ahead of the speech, Australian Sports Commission chief executive Kieren Perkins welcomed the extra money. "The AIS Para Athlete Barrier Fund helps remove some of the practical and financial challenges that can stand in the way of that journey," he said. "We want Australia's para athletes to have the support they need not just to compete, but to thrive, from Glasgow and LA through to Brisbane 2032 and beyond."