The content on this page and other DCITA document archive pages is provided to assist research and may contain references to activities or policies that have no current application. See the full archive disclaimer.
Achievement of Outcome
On this page
Development of a stronger and internationally competitive Australian sports sector and encouragement of greater participation in sport by all Australians
The Australian sports sector is strong, reflecting the community's interest in elite performance by Australian athletes and in participating in sport as a healthy and enjoyable activity. Across the country, sport is generally administered on a 'sport runs sport' basis, with financial and other support being provided by governments at all levels. Recipients of Australian Government funding are required through their funding agreements to display sound governance and implement appropriate anti-doping policies.
In accordance with the Australian Government's sport policy, the Department works with the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority to deliver funding and support in the areas of high-performance sport, community participation, major events, infrastructure and anti-doping.
The Department's role is to:
- provide overarching policy advice to the Government—especially on anti-doping, sport industry development and Indigenous sport and recreation;
- manage specific programs on anti-doping research, water and alpine safety and sporting opportunities for Indigenous peoples;
- oversee the delivery of sporting infrastructure where the Australian Government has approved funding; and
- coordinate the Government's support for major sporting events which in 2005–06 included the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.
A key priority for the Department during 2005–06 was the establishment of the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (see case study, page 77). The Authority is now the single organisational focal point for Australia's anti-doping operational activities. It has assumed the drug testing and education functions of the former Australian Sports Drug Agency and has additional functions to investigate allegations of doping violations, prepare and present doping cases to sporting tribunals and define how Australia's sporting organisations should implement World Anti-Doping Code compliant anti-doping protocols.
Australia 's work in establishing the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority was recognised by the Director General of the World Anti-Doping Agency who noted that the Authority was a model for the rest of the world.
All sporting organisations in receipt of Australian Government funding will be required, as a condition of funding, to recognise the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority's anti-doping jurisdiction.
The Department led Australia's participation in the development of a UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport through its membership of an intergovernmental meeting of experts responsible for drafting the convention. The Department also facilitated Australia's accession to the Convention on 17 January 2006. Once ratified by thirty countries around the world, the Convention will provide the
framework for all countries to contribute to the harmonisation of the global anti-doping effort.
Case study
Clean competition: Australia's anti-doping framework
Australia has taken a leading international role in the fight against doping in sport.
In the process, the Australian Government sought to establish a framework that is both tough on drugs in sport and that recognises and protects athletes' rights.
Through its 'Tough on Drugs in Sport' Strategy, launched prior to the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, the Government established a robust anti-doping framework that included testing and research, and that provided education for athletes and support personnel.
The Government recognised, however, that the credibility and legitimacy of Australia's anti-doping efforts are linked closely to the level of confidence that athletes, sport officials and the public have in the transparency and accountability of the processes for investigating and hearing allegations of doping. In its 2004 Building Australian communities through sport policy, the Government made a commitment to strengthen the investigation of alleged doping violations and to establish clear and consistent arrangements for hearing doping matters.
In June 2005, the Minister for the Arts and Sport, Senator Rod Kemp, announced that the Government would establish a new statutory body as the focal point for Australia's anti-doping operations. The Department developed legislation for the new body to assume the testing, advocacy and education functions of ASDA and to undertake the investigation of alleged doping violations and the presentation of doping cases at hearings.
The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) was launched on 14 March 2006, in time for the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games. The World Anti-Doping Agency welcomed its establishment and described it as a model for other nations.
Australia has also been active in promoting international cooperation on doping in sport—most notably through international instruments such as the 2003 Copenhagen Declaration and the UNESCO International Convention Against Doping in Sport. The Convention was adopted unanimously on 19 October 2005 during the UNESCO General Conference and aims to ensure that governments throughout the world take actions consistent with the World Anti-Doping Code.
Officials from DCITA played an active role in the development of the Convention, including representing Australia on the drafting group. Australia formally acceded to the Convention on 17 January 2006, one of the first countries to do so.
(L–R): ASADA Chair, Richard Ings; Minister for the Arts and Sport, Senator Rod Kemp; and Director General, World Anti-Doping Agency, David Howman at the launch of ASADA in March 2006.
In August 2004, the Government announced that all Ministers were required to assess the governance arrangements of portfolio bodies against the templates that were outlined in the 2003 Review of governance of statutory authorities and office holders by Mr John Uhrig AC. Consistent with this announcement, the Department undertook the assessment of the Australian Sports Commission's governance arrangements against the templates developed by the review.
The Department successfully coordinated the Australian Government's support for the XVIIIth Commonwealth Games held in Melbourne in March 2006 (see case study, page 79). This was a significant international sporting event involving 4500 athletes from the 53 countries and 18 territories of the Commonwealth. The Games were widely hailed as a success with over 1.7 million tickets sold and a global television audience of 1.5 billion.
The Australian Government provided $112.9 million in direct financial assistance to the Victorian Government to ensure the successful staging of the Games and to leverage national benefits and legacies. Over 30 Australian Government agencies provided security and non-security services valued at $176.4 million. A comprehensive recognition package acknowledging the Government's support was negotiated by the Department.
The Department also organised the third Commonwealth Sports Ministers' Meeting which was held in Melbourne in the margins of the Commonwealth Games. The meeting was chaired by the Minister for the Arts and Sport and attended by over 150 delegates from 50 Commonwealth nations and territories.
The Commonwealth Sports Ministers' Meeting addressed the application of sports programs in assisting the health, social and economic development of Commonwealth countries. The meeting agreed to promote the benefits of sport and physical activity and the contribution of physical education and sport to educational outcomes. The meeting also agreed to use sport to build inclusive communities and develop leadership and participation in the community.
Using sport to build healthy and active communities is a key Australian Government objective. This is particularly relevant to Indigenous communities, where sport is an important feature of community life. During 2005–06, the Indigenous Sport and Recreation Program continued to support community participation in sport and physical recreation activity, recognising that these activities contribute to improving the health and physical wellbeing of Indigenous Australians.
The Australian Government provides funding to community sporting and recreational groups for facility upgrades and improvements. The Department administers this funding through the development and monitoring of funding agreements that underpin the projects.
High levels of sport participation
The Exercise, Recreation and Sport Survey is a joint Australian Government and State Government initiative. The survey is conducted annually to collect data on the frequency, nature and type of activities undertaken by people aged 15 years and over for exercise, recreation and sport during the 12 months before interview.
The Participation in Exercise, Recreation and Sport Survey 2005 Annual Report indicated that an estimated 11.1 million persons aged 15 years and over participated at least once per week in physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport (not including household or garden chores, or activities that were part of work), a participation rate of
69.2 per cent. This is equivalent to the number of persons who participated at least once per week in 2004.
Case study
Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games
The Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games (M2006 Games), held from 15 to 26 March 2006, was the largest international sporting event ever held in Victoria and around one third the size of the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. The event was widely hailed as a success—over 1.7 million tickets were sold, around 90 000 tourists came to Melbourne from interstate and overseas and there was a global television audience of 1.5 billion. Some 2.0 million people attended the cultural program, Festival Melbourne 2006, held in conjunction with the sporting competition.
The M2006 Commonwealth Games Taskforce, set up within the Department in 2002, played a major cross-government role in assisting the Minister for the Arts and Sport to coordinate Australian Government involvement in the Games. More than 30 Australian Government agencies provided Games-related security and non-security support. The Attorney-General's Department provided security expertise to the Taskforce and public affairs specialists developed and managed a whole-of-Government communications strategy for the Games.
The Taskforce worked closely not only with Australian Government security and non-security agencies but also with the Victorian Government and the M2006 Games Corporation, which was responsible for staging the event.
Development of a package of Australian Government support for the M2006 Games valued at $289 million was co-ordinated by the Taskforce. This included $113 million in direct financial support to the Victorian Government for M2006 Games projects, including the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the Queen's Baton Relay, Festival Melbourne 2006 and the Volunteer Program, and $176 million in security and non-security services and support.
The package of assistance was designed to leverage a number of national benefits and legacies. Key outcomes included generating business benefits through promoting Australian businesses as world-class trade and investment partners, showcasing Australia as a premium major events and holiday destination, strengthening relationships within the Commonwealth, and consolidating the Commonwealth Games as a major international sporting event and Australia as a sporting nation.
The Taskforce also ensured recognition of the Australian Government's involvement in the M2006 Games appropriate for the level of contribution provided. This included signage at M2006 Games venues, Australian Government branding on workforce uniforms and a range of Games collateral, including the tickets, and the involvement of Australian Government ministers in various Games activities.
Elite Athletes with a Disability (EAD) program launch. (L–R) Attorney General’s Department M2006 Taskforce Security team members, Dianna Ferry, Carolyn Wolfernden, M2006 mascot ‘Karak’, Senator Rod Kemp, Lindsay Hansch (Manager), Siw Whitkof. Photo by Mark Farrelly.
The participation rate dropped with higher frequency of involvement. An estimated 7.1 million persons aged 15 years and over exercised three or more times per week (44.2 per cent) and a total of 4.9 million persons (30.8 per cent) either did not participate in any activity, or participated less than once per week.
The proportion of Australians who participated in organised sport in 2005 has fallen from 42.7 per cent in 2004 to 41.8 per cent in 2005.
Stronger and internationally competitive Australian sports sector
The Department contributes to the development of a competitive Australian sports sector through its work on strengthening the fight against doping in sport, coordinating government involvement in major sporting events and providing policy advice to the Government on sport issues.
Australian Government financial and other support for major sporting events, such as the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, is a key strategy for building the Australian sport and leisure industry. These events not only give Australia's high-performance athletes the opportunity to participate in world-class sporting competition, but also showcase Australia's ability to stage major events and promote the capacity of the Australian sport and leisure industry generally.