A Winning Edge?

Australia’s Winning Edge 2012-2022 high performance plan was announced at the Melbourne Cricket Ground this morning.
In a press statement it was reported that the Winning Edge :

• Outlines a new business model for Australia’s high performance sport system
• Sets targets for Australia to be: a top five nation at the Olympics and Paralympics;  a top 15 nation at the Winter Olympics and Paralympics; number one at the Commonwealth Games; and have more than 20 world champions annually.

The plan confirms that funding to sports will be based on “a new set of investment principles that will assess sports’ ability to provide sound evidence that they can contribute to the targets”. There will be an annual State of Sports report that will provide details of how sports perform against their plans.
The Edge affirms that there will be “a greater focus on investing, developing and retaining coaches and more money invested in supporting more athletes”. The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) will allocate an additional $20 million in these areas in the forthcoming Olympic and Paralympic cycle. The AIS will open its campus to more athletes to use its training environment, sports science, recovery and rehabilitation facilities.
There will be an annual Sports Draft Camp to identify potential champions in Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games sports.
The Australian Sports Commission’s website has a downloadable copy of the plan with additional documents on:

• AIS Centre for Performance Coaching and Leadership
• Athlete Pathway (Talent) Development Initiatives
• Coaching and High Performance: NSO Competitive Innovation Funding Pool
• High Performance Investment Principles