The Southern Sports Academy is one of eleven Regional Academies of Sport that operate throughout NSW, each providing an essential delivery arm for the support of sub elite athletes in NSW.
With the binoculars focused on the Regional Academies of Sport a closer look will provide evidence of some outstanding achievements in 2019. When you take a closer look at the RASi network the results are quite remarkable and the benefits returned to NSW are simply staggering. Collectively the Academies provide the following benefits to NSW; $59.1 million in economic return, a financial return of 24:1 on NSW Government spend, 187 jobs created, 2360 athletes, 337 coaches and 470 volunteers engaged annually across the RASi network.
Mark Calverley , CEO of the Southern Sports Academy and Director of the Regional Academies of Sport (RASi) network said of the release of the High Performance Sports Strategy; “This week we received the release of the 2024 National High Performance Sports Strategy and congratulations to the State Institutes and Academies for their collaboration in building a robust national strategy aimed at the very top end of the FTEM model of athlete development, that being the Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games outcomes. While the national strategy is extremely important it is also essential to be developing and nurturing the very organisations that underpin the development of effective athlete pathways. The work of the Regional Academies of Sport across NSW clearly supports the National strategy through our own ongoing commitment to helping our local athletes make the step to higher order performance through the many programs delivered in a local setting.”
In August last year the Australian Government launched Sport 2030 with a clear objective, ‘to ensure Australia is the most active and healthy nation, known for its integrity and sporting success’. Mark Calverley again commented on this in relation to the Regional Academies of Sport. “We need to be working hand in glove with the three levels off government to assist in making this a reality in NSW. Regional Academies work in this space daily, we are working with over 2,300 athletes annually to help them advance their skills to higher performance levels and by doing this we are making them more active, better citizens and safeguarding the integrity in sport due to the education and development programs Regional Academies offer. I’m delighted to say Regional Academies are doing their part in helping achieve the outcomes sought by Sport 2030.”