Australian Olympic Success At Risk Amid Funding Shortfall: AOC Boss

CANBERRA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th Mar, 2023 ) :The head of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) has warned the country could fail at future Olympic Games without a funding boost.

In a speech to the National Press Club in Canberra on Monday, AOC chief executive Matt Carroll called on the Federal government to establish a dedicated department of sport to address a decline in sports funding.

Carroll said in the lead-up to the 2032 Olympic Games in Brisbane, the government must invest an additional 200 million Australian Dollars (133.1 million U.S. dollars) every year to ensure Australian athletes remain competitive on the global stage.

In addition to the 2032 Olympics, which will be the third time the Games have been held in Australia following Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000, the state of Victoria will also host the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

Carroll said without investment "what governments in Australia want the sport to achieve for the community is not going to happen." As an example, Carroll cited Australia's men's volleyball team.

The Volleyroos had their funding cut by the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) after failing to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics and have since fallen from 13th in the world rankings to 39th.

"As an industry sector, we are fiscal contributors to the nation's well-being through the critical role sport plays in our collective health," Carroll said.