Page 660 - Week 02 - Thursday, 19 February 2015
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Sport—tennis
MR DOSZPOT (Molonglo) (5.59): Last Thursday evening, 12 February, I was amongst the 230 people who attended the inaugural Tennis ACT gala dinner fundraiser held at the QT Hotel. The dinner was a fundraiser for Tennis ACT in order to raise funds to complete the additional upgrades for the Canberra tennis centre required to increase the numbers of international events that may be held at the venue. Australian tennis legends Wally Masur, John Fitzgerald and Todd Woodbridge were the special guest speakers at the dinner, and we were treated to some interesting insights into their individual experiences as well as some hilarious shared exploits between the three friends—the new Australian captain, Canberra product Wally Masur, John Fitzgerald and Todd Woodbridge. They also related their views on this year’s Australian Open and the form of some of the current Australian players. Nick Kyrgios also attended, along with his parents Nil and George Kyrgios.
Congratulations to Tennis ACT CEO Ross Triffitt, President John Cattle and his board and the MC, Phil Lynch, for an interesting and productive evening. Congratulations also to Maxim Chartered Accountants. Through their initiative, the Maxim invitational charity fundraising event, which was established in 2011, has now raised over half a million dollars for worthwhile charities in the Canberra community.
On the morning and afternoon of the Tennis ACT dinner the 2015 Maxim invitational tennis charity day was held, with 120 players from 32 teams competing at the north Woden tennis centre. The tennis legends worked hard all day, as Wally Masur, John Fitzgerald and Todd Woodbridge played with various teams throughout the day and then backed up as the special guest speakers in the evening. I understand the 2015 Maxim invitational tennis charity day raised $150,000 for the two featured charities—Kulture Break and Technical Aid to the Disabled ACT, TADACT.
Sport—International Children’s Games
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo—Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Minister for Justice, Minister for Sport and Recreation and Minister assisting the Chief Minister on Transport Reform) (6.01): I would like to take this opportunity to give members an update on a recent effort by ACT athletes who went to the 48th annual International Children’s Games, which were held in Newcastle from 6 to 11 December 2014 and were hosted by Lake Macquarie council. Eleven ACT track and field athletes participated, all of them between 14 and 15 years of age. Some 1,500 young athletes participated overall in the event, from 70 cities and from 40 countries.
This was the first time that the games have been held in the Southern Hemisphere and only the third time that any Australian cities have participated. The games go back to the Cold War in 1968, when a physical education teacher living in Slovenia, then part of Yugoslavia, had a vision to encourage peace and goodwill amongst children of different cultural backgrounds. It has grown into the largest multisport youth games in the world and is a recognised member of the International Olympic Committee.
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