During his recent address, Mr Carroll, CEO of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC), highlighted the ongoing and significant decline in Federal Government investment in sport, despite numerous national sport plans and reviews demonstrating that sport generates a return of $7 for every $1 invested.
To address this decline, Mr Carroll has proposed a range of measures, including a new partnership between sport and the Government, the establishment of a stand-alone Federal Department of Sport, and a national “statement of purpose for sport.”
According to Mr Carroll, previous sports plans have failed to achieve their ambitions due to insufficient funding. He explained that Australian sport is projected to fall over a financial cliff if this trend continues, with sports competing for a smaller slice of the funding pie.
“Successive sports plans over many years have not achieved their ambitions, because they have been funded to fail.”
“On the forward projections based on the work we have done with our 44 Member Sports, Australian sport will fall over a financial cliff. Sports are fighting each other for a share of a cake that keeps getting smaller.”
“Our analysis shows that based on the forward estimates, there’s a $2 billion shortfall in direct funding to sports across the ten years leading to Brisbane 2032. The shortfall consists of half a billion for participation and $1.5 billion for high performance, spread over the ten years.”
“That’s not nearly enough to retain the current levels of sports performance, let alone to maximise the Brisbane 2032 opportunities.”
“These are the same sports which are played by more than 13 million Australians and which bring to the table an army of volunteers, coaches and officials. To be clear, this is not funding for the AOC. We ask for none, but it is investment directly to the sports so they can fulfil their mission for the Australian community.”
“Every national sports plan recognises the enormous value of sport in tackling the crises in obesity and chronic diseases including mental health problems. Plus, the value of sport in bringing communities together, creating social harmony, creating economic benefit and helping a generation of young people negotiate the future.”
“The investment benefits are universally acknowledged and yet the decline continues.”
To address these challenges, Mr Carroll proposed a range of solutions, including a Statement of Purpose for sport that defines sport as a national priority, a new sport investment model that delivers a measurable and objective return on investment while improving transparency and accountability, and a stand-alone Department of Sport that incorporates the Australian Sports Commission, Sport Integrity Australia, and the National Sports Tribunal.
Additionally, Mr Carroll proposed a partnership between sport and government, with sport contributing to policy development across multiple portfolios, investment in the Australian Institute of Sport to transform it into the CSIRO of sport, and a national sports events strategy to maximize the benefits of hosting major global sports events in Australia.
Given that Brisbane will now host the Olympic Games in 2032 and Victoria will host the Commonwealth Games in 2026, the AOC, in conjunction with Commonwealth Games Australia, is refreshing its 2021 Sport: Powering Australia’s Future (10+10) submission.
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Photo courtesy of Australian Olympic Committee
Courtesy Australian Olympic Committee