Olympic Recognition for Our Local Academy of Sport

Written on the 28 February 2024 by SWSAS

Image: Academy CEO Gerry Knights (R) with James Edwards (L), Chief of Community Engagement, Australian Olympic Committee

The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has formally recognised all eleven NSW Regional Academies of Sport, as official Australian Olympic Training Centres.

Regional Academies, including our very own South West Sydney Academy of Sport, play a significant role in the development of young Australian athletes, by providing critical support in the early stages of their Olympic journeys, including access to tailored sport specific education programs, coaching, camps, and competitions. 

AOC CEO Matt Carroll said this recognition highlights the vital role regional academies play in developing our future Olympic champions.

“By officially designating the NSW regional academies of sport as Australian Olympic Training Centres, we acknowledge the crucial contribution these academies make to the athlete pathway, in regional NSW,” Mr Carroll said.

Carroll congratulated each of the academies on this special recognition, which will provide additional motivation for the academy athletes aspiring to represent Australia on the Olympic stage, as we continue to progress along the green and gold runway, towards Brisbane 2032.

An amazing over fifty Rio and Tokyo Olympians were nurtured through their early careers by the regional academies, including our local academy champions Emily Chalker, Gabby Plain, and the likes of Jessica Fox, Emma McKeon, and Tom Burton.

Their journeys to the pinnacle of international competition exemplify the effectiveness of the athlete programs implemented by regional academies.

Local South West Sydney Academy of Sport, CEO Gerry Knights greeted the announcement with excitement and high enthusiasm, stating that this is the ultimate in Academy recognition, and also in Australian sport pathway development, whilst recognising its importance at this time for young Australian athletes, as we look forward to the Brisbane Games, in 2032.

With the majority of current academy athletes aged anywhere from fourteen years of age to eighteen, mean’s that they will be our appropriately aged future stars, that we see on the big stage, in 8 years’ time.

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