Page 599 - Week 02 - Thursday, 21 February 2019

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MS BERRY: What a great victory the University of Canberra Capitals completed on Saturday. Canberra’s most successful national sporting team built on their amazing record with their eighth title after a great finals series against Adelaide Lightning. All season we have been watching as this team got better and better: their grit, their skill, their power and teamwork.

It had been a while between titles for the University of Canberra Capitals, but to see the way the Canberra fans got behind this exceptional team of athletes on Saturday was great, and there is a dividend that will flow from this victory. What I want to see now is more people shooting hoops with their friends and families, more young people taking up basketball and more people supporting elite women’s sport.

I also want to make a point about the great spirit the University of Canberra Caps players showed all season in engaging with their fans. It is often this personal connection that motivates children to have a go at sport for themselves. It was great to see all of the signs posted around the AIS stadium supporting individual players, and there was a real connection between the Canberra community and some of the individual players of the University of Canberra Capitals.

As is so often the case in women’s sport, the Caps players are typically not motivated by big money or fame but a desire to contribute to a great team and to a win, and to be great role models. That is why the ACT government stuck with the Caps through a few lean years and was happy to support them in their victory.

MS CODY: Minister, how has the ACT government supported the Capitals in this great achievement?

MS BERRY: We are not a bandwagon government. We never stopped believing. In the election campaign in 2016, ACT Labor made an important commitment to this team, that we would provide a four-year, $1 million funding agreement for them to bring them more in line with government-funded elite men’s sport. This funding certainty matters for staffing, player signings, facilities, sponsors and ultimately for results.

The ACT government has also supported the Caps in their move to their new home court at the National Convention Centre. Through the ACT Academy of Sport, we have also provided gym and fitness equipment for the Caps to use during the season.

The government is always conscious of the fact that it is public money that we direct to elite sports like the Caps. We ask the community to make this contribution because the gains on offer are so great. I hope members agree that it has been a worthwhile investment.

MS ORR: Minister, why is it important for governments to keep driving towards gender equality in elite sport and sports administration?

MS BERRY: I thank Ms Orr for the question. It is because we are not there yet. As with political representation and board representation, the ACT government’s view,


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