Australia wants to enhance funding for Paralympic athletes

From the Canberra Times in Australia:

Australian Paralympic Committee president Greg Hartung has called for an expansion of AIS (Australian Institute of Sport) programs for disabled athletes to ensure future Paralympic success.

An upcoming Australian Sports Commission review of Australia's Olympic and Paralympic teams' performances in Beijing will detail areas of desired improvement.

And Hartung hopes the review will recommend funding for more sports-specific scholarships at the AIS for prospective Paralympians.

In the lead-up to the Beijing Paralympics, athletics was the only sport with a dedicated AIS training program. The Paralympic committee covers 22 individual sports.

In contrast, China established two Paralympic-specific institutes for the five years leading up to this month's Games.

Hartung said Australia risked being left behind for London in 2012 if further action was not taken.

''From an Australian Paralympic Committee perspective, these Games demonstrated the staggering growth of Paralympic sport around the world,'' Hartung said.

''It's clearly signalled to us that the bar has been raised and if we are to be competitive and are to succeed, we have to double our efforts between now and London.

''That will require a financial injection but exactly what that is will depend on the size and scope of programs we can develop with our partners.''

The Federal Government's current financial grant to the APC is about $8 million.

As part of this year's budget the new Labor Government announced a further $750,000 which will largely go toward setting up a Paralympic swimming program at the AIS servicing up to six residential scholarships, a second athletics coach and a powerlifting coach.

Hartung, who is also the deputy chairman of the sports commission, described the added funding as ''a start'' but not enough to confidently predict a successful London campaign for Australia.

''It's clearly obvious we have to do more of this stuff to succeed in London and beyond,'' he said. ''The process has begun, it's a great start and I'm confident we will get further positive responses about this. We're on the right train, we just need more carriages.''

Australian Paralympic Committee chief executive Darren Peters supported Hartung's call for more development.

Peters, who attended yesterday's Olympic and Paralympic athletes' parade in Civic Square, insisted change was required to ensure future success.

''For Australia to remain at the same level we are now, and to progress from that, we've got to change things,'' he said.

''We've got to target things. Talent search is very important because we won a lot of medals in Beijing from athletes who weren't known two years ago.

''The Paralympics competition is getting tougher and we need to stay in tune with our competitors.''

Athlete Heath Francis (pictured) hoped more could be done in the lead-up to London.
Francis, who won three gold medals in Beijing, said he wouldn't have enjoyed the success he did if it wasn't for the AIS athletics program.

The 26-year-old believed it would be ''so much tougher'' to be competitive in the future if other countries continued to develop their programs ahead of Australia.

''Our AIS program ... has been incredibly successful and provided so much support but the Paralympics are so much more professional these days,'' he said.