- VenuesWest directly supports four WA high-performance athletes as part of its ambassador program for 2023/24
- Ambassadors highlight the role venues play in developing homegrown athletes
- Four athletes will receive financial assistance ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics
Four of the State's high-performing athletes will further their pursuit of sporting success as recipients of the 2023/24 VenuesWest Brand Ambassador Program.
Following a rigorous two-month selection process, Rhiannon Clarke, Kurtis Marschall, Genevieve Hart and Natasha Rigby have been selected as the four successful ambassadors.
The athletes selected are each based at a VenuesWest venue and have competed or are striving to compete at the highest levels for Australia, representing one of VenuesWest's 18 targeted sports.
Each successful ambassador will receive an $8,000 sponsorship to assist with training and competition expenses ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The Brand Ambassador Program, now in its fifth year, already has a rich history of assisting WA athletes to reach some lofty goals.
Of the 78 Western Australian athletes selected for the Australian Olympic and Paralympic team for the Tokyo Games, six were former VenuesWest Brand Ambassadors, and most also hope to compete in the Paris Games next year.
WA athletes took home 14 Olympic medals from Tokyo, four of which belonged to former ambassadors Brianna Throssell and Tamsin Cook. In the Paralympic Games, former ambassadors Sarah Edmiston and Robyn Lambird took home bronze in their respective disciplines; discus F44 and 100m T34.
In recent weeks, former ambassadors continued to reach for their goals as Courtney Bruce was selected for the Diamonds team in the Netball World Cup, Zoe Arancini was appointed to the Aussie Stingers squad for the World Aquatic Women's Water Polo World Cup, and Nina Kennedy won gold in pole vault at the Paris Diamond League, jumping 4.77 metres.
VenuesWest owns 14 of Western Australia's premier sport and entertainment venues on behalf of the State Government and directly supports WA's high-performance athletes as they strive to compete on the world stage.
In 2022/23, VenuesWest delivered considerable support to their 18 targeted sports through subsidising competition and training in their venues. They provided priority of use and investment in venue upgrades, allowing for 18,733 hours of high-performance training and competition to date.
The Ambassadors are:
Rhiannon Clarke Para Athletics
Rhiannon, who trains at WA Athletics Stadium, competed at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021 in the 100m T38 and 400m T38, earning an Australian record. She also won a bronze medal in the 100m T38 at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Kurtis Marschall Athletics
Kurtis is a dual Commonwealth Games pole vault gold medallist, jumping 5.70 metres in Birmingham 2022 and 5.86 metres in Gold Coast 2018. He also competed in the Rio and Tokyo Olympic Games.
Genevieve Hart - Rowing
Genevieve (Gen) trains at the Champion Lakes Regatta Centre and hopes to be selected in the Under 23 Australian Rowing Team next year. She has an inspirational goal of one-day winning Olympic gold.
Natasha Rigby - Soccer
Natasha is the captain of the Perth Glory Women's team and has goals in the next two years to win an A-League Grand Final and compete for Matilda's selection.
Comments attributed to Sport and Recreation Minister David Templeman:
"VenuesWest's 2023/24 Brand Ambassador Program champions the dreams of four more home-grown high-performance athletes across various sports.
"These amazing young athletes will inspire juniors coming up through the ranks in their sport and encourage perseverance as they pursue their dreams of competing on the world stage.
"Many of the finest athletes in our State are not on big salaries and go through significant sacrifice to be competitive in their sport financial assistance such as this helps them pursue their dreams and inspire others in the community."
