High performance sports superstars and specialists converge on Brisbane

Sports Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said the event, hosted by the Queensland Government’s high-performance sports agency, the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS), was another marker on the green and gold runway to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

“This is the first time the Queensland Government has hosted an event of this calibre with high performance experts from across the State, wider Australia and internationally,” he said.

“It is fantastic to see the breadth of high-performance sport leaders and front-line experts coming together to learn, share and collaborate and ensure we are best prepared for 2032.”

The IGNITE 2032 Conference will discuss topics including modern day coaching methods, performance planning, cultivating high-performance winning environments, delivering under pressure, high-performance parenting, talent identification, and leveraging technology and innovation to deliver the cutting-edge advantage.

“Australia’s most decorated Australian swimming coach, Michael Bohl, coach to 11-time Olympic Medallist, Emma McKeon will head a panel discussion on ‘Winning after Winning’ with expert performance scientist, Tim Kerrison, the mastermind behind seven Tour de France wins,” Minister Hinchliffe said.

“Four-time Olympic swimmer, multi-medallist and World Record holder, Cate Campbell OAM will lead a panel on ‘Servicing the Modern Athlete’ with athletes Claire Colwill (Hockeyroos Commonwealth Games Silver Medallist), Alyce Wood (Canoeist Dual Olympian and World Champion) and Ella Sabljak (Wheelchair Basketball Commonwealth Games Silver Medallist and Wheelchair Rugby World Champion).

“And the parents of Olympic Gold Medallist swimmer, Ariarne Titmus, former World number 1 tennis player, Ash Barty and Olympic discus thrower and Commonwealth Champion, Matt Denny will chat about the highs and lows of parenting elite athletes,” he said.

Speakers will also provide insights about delivering excellence under pressure, including Artistic Director of the Queensland Ballet, Li Cunxin AO, Leadership, Character and Ethics instructor of the Australian Department of Defence Mat Wann, QAS Performance Psychologist Jonah Oliver, and Emergency Physician, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital Dr Alex Markwell joining QAS Chief Medical Officer, Dr Sharon Stay.

QAS CEO Chelsea Warr said it was exciting to host such a diverse and innovative event for the very people charged with preparing our Queensland and Australian athletes for success in 2032.

“It is well known in the world of high-performance sport that the successful campaigns make less mistakes and learn faster than the opposition. One of the keys ways we can enable this is through collaboration and co-creation amongst peers, and related industries,” Mrs Warr said.

“It’s fantastic and inspiring to welcome more than 500 of the industry’s sharpest performance minds coming together to learn and initiate breakthrough thinking early in our 2032 journey that will benefit our athletes on the 2032 green and gold runway.”