Category: Paralympic Games
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Importance of the Paralympic Games: Highlighting the Journeys of Athletes with a Disability
By Greg Blood During the next two weeks we will hear or read about the journeys of many Paralympic athletes. These journeys about striving for excellence in their sport and overcoming challenges along the way. I worked at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) for nearly thirty years and during this period, I realised that…
australiansportreflections
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Australian Officials at Tokyo Olympics & Paralympics: Pinnacle of Their Careers
By Greg Blood Updated – 12 August 2021 Many of us know about the athletes and in some cases the coaches at the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics but little is known about the Australian officials selected. Listed are Australian officials who in many cases the Olympics and Paralympics is the pinnacle of their officiating career.…
australiansportreflections
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Australian Government’s Contribution to Australian Olympic and Paralympic Teams at Tokyo 2021 through the AIS
By Greg Blood With the upcoming Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics, it is worthwhile examining the contribution of the Australian Government through the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) to Australian Olympic and Paralympic team preparation from 2016 to 2021. These teams have also been supported by Australian Olympic Committee, Paralympics Australia, state institute/academies of sport, national…
australiansportreflections
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Power of understanding political processes and lobbying in Australian sport – insights from Greg Hartung’s career in sport administration
By Greg Blood Greg Hartung’s career in journalism and then in sport administration highlights the need for senior Australian sport leaders to understand political processes to obtain the desired outcomes for their organisation and sport. This is important for both big and small national sports organisations (NSO) as they rely heavily on Australian Government funding…
australiansportreflections
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The Australian High Performance System – the Way Forward
By Jim Ferguson Background With Australia likely to win the rights to host the 2032 Olympic Games renewed attention will be focussed on our elite sporting performance. This has declined in recent years. From being recognised as a world leader with 4th place on the total medal tally at both the Sydney and Athens Olympics,…
australiansportreflections
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Revisiting Olympic Athlete Program & Paralympic Preparation Program (1994-2000)
By Greg Blood It is worthwhile revisiting the Olympic Athlete Program (OAP) and Paralympic Preparation Program (PPP) with the strong likelihood of Brisbane and South East Queensland hosting the 2032 Summer Olympics and Paralympics. These Australian Government funding programs led to Australia having its most successful Summer Olympics and Paralympics to date. Besides the Australia’s…
australiansportreflections
Australian Institute of Sport, Australian Olympic Committee, Australian Sports Commission, Author – Greg Blood, Coaching, Evaluation and Review, Funding, Governance, Government Policy, High Performance Sport, History, Olympic Games, Paralympic Games, Paralympics Australia, Politics, Sport Science, Sports Medicine, Talent Development -
Further reflections on the Australian Institute of Sport – a national ‘living’ icon.
By Ron Harvey CVO AM – 3rd Director of the AIS (1987-1989) My recent article AIS – a national living icon and recent reflections by early AIS staff and athletes made me look back to Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser’s comments when he opened the AIS in 1981- “Coaches and athletes working together through this institute,…
australiansportreflections
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My 50 ‘Best of the Best’ Australian Institute of Sport Scholarship Athletes
Celebrating the 40th AIS Anniversary by Greg Blood The Australian Institute of Sport celebrates its 40th anniversary on 26 January 2021. It was opened by Prime Minister Malcom Fraser by unveiling John Robinson’s ‘Acrobats’ statue. The establishment of the AIS has been one of the most significant developments in Australian sport – taking Australia from…
australiansportreflections
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Australian Sport in 2020 – ‘Unprecedented’ Year for Sport Administrators
by Greg Blood Australian sport administrators have been under enormous stress during 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other issues. It is worthwhile to briefly document the many challenges managed during this ‘unprecedented’ year’. Sports Rorts The year started with the Australian National Audit Office report into Sport Australia’s Community Sport Infrastructure Program that…
australiansportreflections
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2022 Beijing Winter Olympics / Paralympics – sporting sanctions should not be used to protest against China’s human rights record
by Greg Blood The Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China has been reported to call for China to be stripped of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympics due to the country’s increasingly poor human rights record. This made me reflect on two instances of the Australian Government using sporting boycotts/sanctions – boycott of 1980 Moscow Olympics and banning…
australiansportreflections