[Image ID - White text reads “Good News - Oct/Nov 2023” on a green background overlaid on top of an image of children playing sports.]

Hello and welcome back to Disability Sports Australia’s Good News roundup for October and November!

For those that are new to the Good News series, this is a shortlist of DSA’s favourite stories that we have seen these past months.

At DSA, we love learning about the wonderful things people are doing for the active disability space. We hope this series generates a snowball effect of good stories to share leading to further growth in the sector.

Do you have a story you want us to tell?

Please send the story and your contact details to media@sports.org.au.

Kurt Fearnley inducted into Sporting Hall of Fame

Wheelchair racing star Kurt Fearnley was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in early October. He became the 9th Paralympian to join these ranks after a hugely successful career spanning over 20 years.

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Fearnley’s trophy cabinet is impressive, featuring 13 medals from 5 Paralympics, in addition to 4 medals from Commonwealth Games appearances. He also bore the Australian flag at the 2018 Commonwealth Games closing ceremony.

Off the track, Fearnley has been the recipient of numerous awards and accolades including an OAM, AO, NSW Young Australian of the Year, NSW Australian of the year, and more. He also serves on the board of several sports and disability organisations.

Powerchair Football World Cup takes place in Sydney

Sydney played host to the FIPFA Powerchair Football World Cup 2023 from the 15-20 October seeing 10 teams compete across 6 days to determine the world champions.

Australia had a tough time of it in the early stages of the tournament but managed to place 6th overall after losing 3-0 to Denmark on the final day. Results were competitive and close across the board on that day, with this game having the largest winning margin. The Grand Final saw tournament juggernauts France and England battling it out for the gold, ending in a 1-1 draw to take the game to penalties. France eventually took the lead in the shootout, taking the gold, with England taking silver. Bronze went to the United States following their win against Argentina in the 3rd place playoffs.

Match recaps can be found on the FIPFA Powerchair Football World Cup blog here, and the streams can be found on the FIPFA Youtube.

Australian Steelers win Wheelchair Rugby World Cup 2023

The International Wheelchair Rugby Cup 2023 took place in France in October, alongside the Rugby World Cup for the first time in history. 8 teams battled it out over 5 days to become the world champions.

Matches were close across the entire tournament, with most games finishing with very small score margins. The finals series saw France and Japan play off for 3rd place, and the Australian Steelers facing Canada to try and retain their crown from 2022. With just one point in it, Japan took the bronze 49-50, and Australia defeated Canada 48-53 to win the gold.

You can watch all the matches on the World Wheelchair Rugby YouTube channel.

Toyota Wheelchair AFL Nationals take place in Melbourne

Starting off November with a bang, the Toyota Wheelchair AFL Nationals 2023 took place over the first weekend of the month. The best of the best from every state travelled to Melbourne for 4 days of action.

Beginning with the lightning carnival stage, 9 teams played quickfire matches to establish an initial ladder. This ladder was divided into Division 1 and Division 2, in which teams then played off against each other to establish the match ups for the finals. The Division 2 Grand Final resulted in a premiership for Tasmania as they found victory against NSW/ACT 82 – 49. The Division 1 Grand Final saw Victoria Metro defeat WA 109 - 52 in the last match of the tournament.

The weekend also saw several community engagement initiatives take place. We ran a Variety Abilities Unleashed event on the first day, where participants also got to watch and support teams in the tournament! We also had a school program where students enjoyed active programs and watching the Nationals in between. The final day saw the Women’s Showcase and All-Star matches take to the Show Court for exhibitions, and throughout the weekend the little legends of Wheelchair Auskick took part in clinics and half-time matches over the finals series of the main tournament.

Visit AFL Inclusion on Facebook to keep up with all things accessible AFL.

Successes for Australia at IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships

The ParaMatildas and ParaRoos hosted the 2023 IFCPF Asia-Oceania Championships in early November, which included the ParaMatildas’ first ever home international game and the ParaRoos’ first since 2000. Held in Melbourne at La Trobe University, the home of the Matildas, the tournament consisted of 4 women’s teams and 6 men’s. The theme for the Australian campaigns was “Undefeated is Forever”, a fitting motto for a successful tournament across the board.

The ParaRoos made it to the finals, an intense match against Iran. While the Roos fought hard, Iran took the victory, placing the ParaRoos in second place. The ParaMatildas remained entirely undefeated through the tournament, taking the gold medal in their Grand Final win against Japan, one of their biggest rivals of the tournament.

News from the tournament can be found on the ParaMatildas and ParaRoos websites:

Matches can be watched on the Football Australia YouTube channel.

U-BEACH wins Best Community Program award at 2023 Disability Service Awards

In late November, 50 finalists came together in Melbourne to attend the 2023 Disability Service Awards, hosted by One Community. In 13 categories, services and programs were recognised for their work in the sector. Among the winners was U-BEACH, who received the Best Community Program Award.

U-BEACH began in Queensland 2021, a result of the research of PhD candidate Sasha Job. Sasha discovered that 1 in 2 disabled Australians face challenges accessing the beach. She noted these challenges came in many forms – physical accessibility concerns, lack of support, and more.

Since its inception, with the support of councils, community organisations, and surf life saving clubs, more than 1000 people with disability have been supported to access beach activities. As well as providing direct support, U-BEACH aids local communities in making their beach activities accessible by providing and evaluating equipment, providing training, and consulting with councils.

To learn more about U-BEACH, visit their website.

Visit the ADSCA website to view all finalists and winners.

Visit the One Community website here.

Wheelchair Auskicker shares AFL Grand Final moment with Nick Daicos

Young James Nguyen, a Wheelchair Auskicker and big Collingwood fan from east Melbourne, got the opportunity to present Nick Daicos with his medal after Collingwood’s AFL Grand Final win at the end of September. James also exchanged words with his hero at the same time, telling Daicos “You should be so proud!” A beaming Daicos took the time to thank James and ruffle his hair before continuing his celebrations.

Watch the video below!

Do you have a story you want us to tell?

Please send the story and your contact details to media@sports.org.au

Good News - October/November 2023