Basketball Australia (BA) Chief Executive Officer Larry Sengstock has welcomed the announcement by Federal Sports Minister Kate Ellis of a $300,000 grant to assist in building a stronger future for the sport in Australia.

“This funding will enable BA to continue the on-going reform process, including the appointment of a General Manager for High Performance as recommended in the recent independent review process,” said Sengstock. 

“It will provide a significant boost to our elite national programs and also enable us to further strengthen our pathways from the grassroots through to the elite, which will pay long-term dividends for the sport,” Sengstock added.

Sengstock said the decision by the Federal Government to increase BA’s funding showed the voluntary reform process the sport’s stakeholders had embarked upon was leading the sport in the right direction.

“The Federal Government’s increased support of basketball is a major vote of confidence in our long-term strategic plan,” said Sengstock.  “We’ve worked closer than ever before with the Minister and the Australian Sports Commission throughout this process, and we are extremely grateful for their support.

“This assists us in meeting our immediate objectives and we look forward to the continued support of the Federal Government as we work to achieve our further strategic goals,” Sengstock added.

 “This significant grant, on top of the funding we already receive from the government, also serves to underline the importance of basketball as a sport in Australia.  As the Minister noted when making the announcement, our immense participant base of over 600,000 people playing the game around the country makes us one of this country’s most popular sports.  This additional assistance will help us ensure basketball builds on that strong foundation and continues to grow.

From Basketball.net.au