Queensland’s $1 million grant to promote athletes with disability

The upcoming  2032 Olympic and Paralympic games hosted in Brisbane has encouraged Queensland’s then Labor government to announce an investment program to engage more with disability in sport.

In 2024, the government announced a $1 million deal under the name of the Empower Project. The program targets data collection and tool mapping to promote sports and recreation within people with disability.

It emphases the need to improve the understanding of experiences and obstacles to sports for athletes with disability and their families by 2032.

“Advancing accessibility and empowering people with disability is a foundation of Elevate 2042 that has the vision that we will live in an inclusive, more sustainable and connected society, with more opportunities in life for everyone.” said Grace Grace, current Minister for State Development and Infrastructure.

The program is the result of the partnership of different actors. Queenslanders with Disability (QDN) is collaborating with Sporting Wheelies and univeristies such as Queensland University of Technology (QUT Centre for Data Science), Queensland University(QU) and Griffith University.

“With a state-wide network of over 2,500 members and supporters, Queenslanders with Disability Network ensures that the voices of those with lived experiences are heard.” decalred Michelle Moss, current CEO QDN (Queenslanders with Disability Network).

Engaging with disability in sport in more Australian states

The Empower program encouraged other states to follow a similar path such as in Southern Australia. The SASI (South Australian Sports Institute) program was launched  in late 2024.The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) joined forces with Paralympics Australia and National Institute Network and the Para-Sport Units to provide support for athletes with a disability.

The Australian Government then provided an additional para-sport funding of $54.9m. This amount is doubling the existing support, as promised by Minister for Sport, the Hon Anika Wells in June 2024.

“We invest in facilities like this because they will create more Paralympians and more gold for Australia on the path to Brisbane 2032 and those successes create even more pathways for the kids who are inspired by Alexa Leary or Curtis McGrath.” said Anika Wells, Minister of communication.

Similar porgrams occured in Northern Territories and Western Austrailia between 2024-25, hoping to see results in 2026.