Coles is helping Little A’s club to jump funding hurdles

Coles is helping the Cobar Little Athletics
Club to jump a funding hurdle this season
with a $1,600 grant from the Coles Little
Athletics Community Fund to buy brand
new equipment.
Fresh off the inspiring performances from
Australia’s track and field stars at the Tokyo
Olympics, the Little Athletics centre in Cobar
is hoping new equipment from Coles will help
budding athletes fulfill their sporting potential.
Cobar Little Athletics Club president Troy
Knight said the funding will help the centre to
survive and thrive through challenging times.
“Cobar Little Athletics have supported several
thousand Cobar children since 1976 and
the continued success of our club is due entirely
to the support given by many parents
and guardians, volunteers and the community,”
Mr Knight said.
“The Coles grant will enable us to buy a
new trolley for our high jump mats which will
help volunteers to move them in a safer and
efficient manner.
“New equipment like this will ensure athletes
and volunteers are keen to participate
and thus prolong the longevity of our club.”
Little Athletics Australia president Andrew
Pryor said the grants like this will help Little
Athletics centres to develop the next generation
of Olympians as the sport builds towards
Brisbane 2032.
“We are entering a very exciting period for
Little Athletics following the success of Tokyo
2020 and as we set our sights on Brisbane
2032,” he said.
“Around 75 per cent of the Australian track
and field team who competed in the Tokyo
Olympics and a further 23 percent of paraathletes
in the Paralympics, had their start in
Little Athletics – that’s why support like this
from Coles is so important.
“The grants will help ensure little athletes of
today have all the resources they need to develop
into Olympians of the future, if that is
the pathway they choose.”
Coles Acting State General Manager Mark
Dubock said Coles was extremely proud of its
partnership with Little Athletics Australia.
“Little Athletics centres and their dedicated
volunteers play such a vital role in the local
community to help kids keep active and
healthy. We want to be better together with
the community and we’re proud to play our
part by providing nearly $650,000 in sports
equipment grants to Little Athletics centres in
NSW over the past three years,” he said.