WHEELCHAIR RUGBY AUSTRALIA ESTABLISHED AS AN INDEPENDENT ORGANISATION
Disability Sports Australia (DSA) is excited to announce a historic sports governance change for the sport of wheelchair rugby, having successfully developed and transitioned Wheelchair Rugby Australia (WRA) organisation through the support of its pioneering Sports Incubator program to become a stand-alone organisation.
The DSA Sports Incubator was developed to support and provide expertise to national sporting organisations and recreation program providers to initiate, develop and grow new sport and social active recreation opportunities for people with a disability.
The incubation process includes access to best practice governance and framework documentation, access to support services and guidance relating to funding and events to assist sports develop a sustainable future for their community and members.
In June 2019, DSA made the decision to create a separate division for Wheelchair Rugby Australia, with the goal of supporting WRA through a transition where it would eventually be able to operate as an independent organisation governing the sport of wheelchair rugby in Australia.
Since that time, WRA has demonstrated considerable improvement in a number of critical areas, including the increased professionalism of the Santos Wheelchair Rugby National Championships, the reinvigoration of the Wheelchair Rugby National League and the alignment of state program calendars with the Steelers’ (Australian wheelchair rugby team) national calendar
Disability Sport Australia CEO, Murray Elbourn, said “The transition of Wheelchair Rugby Australia through our Sports Incubator program is wonderful news for the entire disability sports community. This transition provides a successful example that we hope other sports may follow in the future, and establishes a united, best-practice landscape so that more Australians with disability will be able to participate in this great sport.
“It has been a pleasure to support and witness the growth and development of Wheelchair Rugby Australia over the past few years and I want to in particular highlight the significant work that Chris Nay has done to create the environment for this transition to occur. We now look forward to seeing the sport continue to thrive on its own long into the future”, Mr Elbourn continued.
Throughout this process a number of key stakeholders, including Sport Australia, have supported the transition of Wheelchair Rugby Australia with both DSA and Sport Australia committed to offer the necessary guidance and governance advice required for Wheelchair Rugby Australia to establish itself as a leading sporting organisation in the Australian landscape.
To find out more about Disability Sports Australia’s Sport Incubator program visit:
https://www.sports.org.au/sports-incubator
Further Information, please contact: Ayden Shaw
General Manager - Programs and Partnerships
M: 0411 788 315
E: ayden@sports.org.au
