Queensland was a hive of Para-athletics activity last week as all 51 athletes selected for the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships and their personal coaches were funded to attend a training camp hosted by Australian Athletics, landing one of the most significant steps yet on the road to the Brisbane 2032.
Centred around the team announcement which celebrated a new-look Australian Para-athletics outfit featuring 24 debutants and 11 Paralympic medallists, the Brisbane-based camp provided athletes and coaches with an opportunity to bond, learn and unite ahead of the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi from September 26 to October 5.
From receiving their Australian uniforms to education sessions on topics not limited to Athlete Wellbeing, Performance Optimisation and Anti-Doping, the team which is Australia’s second biggest ever for a World Para Athletics Championships quickly became one – from 14-year-olds Lexie Brown and Makayla Elcoate to Paralympic medallist Rosemary Little who is over 20 years into her career.
Making her Australian debut a decade ago, long jumper Sarah Walsh said the camp was a welcomed initiative that left her feeling revitalised ahead of her sixth World Championships campaign.
“This training camp has been incredible, not only for us older athletes but the younger ones as well. It’s the first of its kind in my career and I’ve been around for a while now, we are so lucky to be able to come together and lean on each other in the months leading up to New Delhi,” Walsh said.
“Seeing how excited some of the new athletes are makes me really appreciate being on another Australian team and getting to do this all again. The fresh faces have made me realise that it’s not something I should take for granted.”
Those comments were echoed by sprinter Chad Perris who is lining up for his tenth Australian team, with the Para-athletics icon one of the first to welcome his new teammates with open arms over card games, table tennis and training.
“This is the first time in my career that we have had a training camp like this in the lead up to a major championship. To be able to get those connections and bond as a team before we go into that high stress environment will allow us to hit the ground running,” Perris said.
With developing athletes attending the camp from July 5-9 and senior athletes attending from July 7-13, the timings allowed for specific education sessions and opportunities, with some athletes capping off the week by racing at Coast2Coast on the Gold Coast where sprinters Rhiannon Clarke and Mali Lovell led the charge.
The camp also included a Welcome to Country as part of NAIDOC Week and a session run by Theatresports aimed at increasing awareness and knowledge of sport integrity and social issues, as well as setting the cultural groundwork for a High Performance team.
The next stop for most athletes competing at the 2025 World Para Athletics Championships will be the Australian Team staging camp in Dubai this September, ahead of arriving in New Delhi.
Initial team staff appointments to support the Australian Team can be found HERE.
By Lachlan Moorhouse, Australian Athletics
Posted 15/7/2025
