Kate Lundy (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting for Industry and Innovation) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you Senator Thistlethwaite for your question. I know you are a big supporter of our athletes. The Olympics and Paralympics are fast approaching, and our athletes are putting the final touches to their efforts and preparations as they either are selected or become selected for the team going to London.

Each year the federal government contributes more than $170 million to high-performance sport in Australia. Of this $170 million more than $103 million is directed to sports that will be competing in London. The Gillard government understands how important this funding is to athletes' success. Within the $103 million, $8 million is provided to our athletes under Direct Athlete Support. This support ensures that our athletes who are not yet household names and who do not have the big sponsorship deals will have the means to support themselves during the intense training regimes required if they are to succeed on the international stage.

In addition to Direct Athlete Support the federal government, through the Australian Institute of Sport, has established a European training base, the European Training Centre, in Varese, Italy. This training centre has been going for some time now. The facility is for Australian athletes, with sports science and sports medicine capabilities, access to the best facilities in the region, and athlete career and education support, all within close proximity to the vast competition opportunities that exist in Europe. This AIS European Training Centre aims to replicate the training environment of the Australian Institute of Sport and provide athletes with a European home away from home. The centre enhances Australia's ability to maintain its competitive advantage when athletes are training or competing overseas—and we only need to look at the results from the Rowing World Cup over the weekend to see how the European Training Centre assisted them in their preparations.