As the one-year countdown to Tokyo 2020 begins, Premier Mark McGowan joined some of Western Australia's Olympic Games hopefuls today to announce details of the State Government's new, direct-to-athlete funding program.
The McGowan Government has reformed the State's funding package to do away with providing a single large sum to the centralised Olympic Team Appeal - instead providing local funding direct to local WA athletes.
Each WA Olympian and Paralympian selected for Tokyo 2020 will instead receive a $4,000 State Government grant, which they and their support team can use to tailor the optimum training and support program on the road to the Games.
The State Government will also contribute an additional $50,000, to be split evenly between the Olympic and Paralympic team appeals.
Details were announced today at the Western Australian Institute of Sport's official one-year-out countdown, where some of the State's brightest Olympic aspirants joined a handful of WA athletes who competed at the last Tokyo Olympics in 1964.
Local hopefuls Aran Zalewski (hockey), Georgia Wilson (hockey), Zac Incerti (swimming) and Blair Evans (swimming) joined two of the last Western Australians to compete at a Tokyo Olympics: Belinda Woosley (swimming) and Eric Pearce (hockey).
The direct-to-athlete funding will be provided through the Sports Lotteries Account and administered by the Western Australian Institute of Sport.
The Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games will be held from July 24 - August 9 and the Paralympics from August 25 - September 6.
As stated by Premier Mark McGowan:
"As the countdown begins for Tokyo 2020, I wish all of Western Australia's Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls the best for the journey to the Games.
"Our changes to State Government funding arrangements mean WA athletes selected for the Games will now receive $4,000 direct funding to assist with the preparation.
"This means our athletes now have more control over how they use the funding to prepare for the Games and realise their dreams.
"Under the previous system, State Government funding went towards a centralised fund, leaving WA athletes with little control over how it was spent."
As stated by Sport and Recreation Minister Mick Murray:
"We wanted to make sure the majority of funding provided by the Western Australian people goes to Western Australian athletes.
"These changes make sure the athletes, their support teams and the Western Australian Institute of Sport are given better control of how our local athletes prepare for the Games.
"We are pleased to also be able to contribute significant funding to both the Olympic and Paralympic Team Appeals, and wish the campaign well on the road to Tokyo 2020."
