Academy Position & Structure

ACADEMY POSITION IN SPORTS STRUCTURE

WINGECARRIBEE

SHOALHAVEN WOLLONGONG

SHELLHARBOUR

KIAMA

As a provider of talent development services, the Academy aims to position itself within the sports system at a level which will be of most benefit to athletes.

As an independent autonomous organisation, the Academy is in effect, working on behalf of the local and state sporting associations to develop talented athletes for the benefit of both the athletes and the sport.

The Academy operates within the sports system at several pre elite athlete levels. The programs are designed to complement the activities the athletes receive through their club and representative structure.

NSW GOVERNMENT OFFICE OF SPORT As the largest single partner of the Academy, there are close operational links with the Office of Sport with regular interaction with the South Coast Region and at senior officer level.

LOCAL & STATE SPORTS ASSOCIATIONS The IAS maintains links with a range of organisations to ensure that the local talented athletes receive the best possible support in their path to excellence.

Administrative and coaching links are maintained with local and State sporting associations in the scholarship sports that have programs in the Academy.

NSW INSTITUTE OF SPORT IAS sports programs are structured to ensure the athletes have the greatest opportunity to feed into the NSW Institute of Sport programs (where appropriate).

REGIONAL ACADEMIES OF SPORT INC (RAS) The Regional Academies of Sport (RAS) is a unique network that covers the regional areas of NSW and constitutes nine (9)

independent Regional Academies (including the IAS) and, in conjunction with two (2) Academies operated by the Office of Sport, forms the network.

The RAS network shares information on best-practice in athlete development and enables shared utilisation of resources, education and sports management knowledge and practices. Inter-Academy camps and competition occurs as does the culmination of competition for the Academies through the Your Local Club Academy Games (normally held in the April). The 2021 Regional Academy Games were held in the Hunter District. The role of the RAS network is becoming increasingly relevant with many State Sporting Organisations forming agreements with RAS to enable consistency of outcome across the state.

ACADEMY CATCHMENT AREA The IAS operates through the Illawarra’s geographic region comprising the five local government areas of: Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama, Shoalhaven, and Wingecarribee. Covering an area of 8,485 square kilometres, extending from Helensburgh in the north, Ulladulla in the south and across to the Southern Highlands in the west, with a population of approximately 480,000.