Palaszczuk Government going the distance for aspiring athletes

Queensland’s rising sporting stars who face challenging travel bills just to get to competition, will now be able to receive government subsidies upfront, before they compete.

Minister for Sport Mick de Brenni said a pilot of the Emerging Athlete Pathways (EAP) subsidy will see the inclusion of pre-event payments of up to $1,200 come into effect this month.

“When I heard from parents, especially in regional and remote Queensland, they told me that the pressure of paying for flights or accommodation upfront and claiming help later was an unwelcome distraction in helping prepare their young athlete.

“As part of the Activate! Queensland strategy, this new Palaszczuk Government program is designed to help the families of talented young athletes to overcome difficulties faced because of distance and avoid the stress,” said Mr de Brenni.

“It’s a small change that will make a big difference to aspiring athletes facing extra barriers like distance, cost and time constraints as they seek to fulfil their athletic potential.”

Mr de Brenni said the bones of the program are the same – providing financial assistance to athletes under the age of 18 who are competing at the state, national or international level and need to travel at least 250km to their event.

“Athletes and officials such as coaches, referees and scorers may also be eligible to receive the subsidies,” said Mr de Brenni.

“They may be eligible to receive up to $200 for a state or state school event, $400 for a national or national school event or $600 for an international event.

“The athletes or officials from a wide range of eligible sports can apply for all three tiers of events over two calendar years.

“We live in a big State, so doing what we can to help regional communities get a fair go, is exactly what we’ll do.”

The EAP program was previously known as the Young Athlete Travel Subsidy but has been re-designed after the launch of Activate! Queensland, the state’s 10-year, $1.3 billion plan for getting more Queenslanders moving, more often.

For more information or to apply, visit www.qld.gov.au/recreation/sports/funding

ENDS

Media contact: Rosie Gilbert – 0466 834 330