The President of the Australian Olympic Committee, John Coates, has congratulated the ACT Academy of Sport (ACTAS) on its appointment as an official Olympic Training Centre.

The appointment will be announced tomorrow (Thursday 10 November) by ACT Sport Minister Ted Quinlan at the official opening of the new ACTAS Gymnasium at the National Hockey Centre, Lyneham. Mr Quinlan is due to open the facility at 10 a.m.

“The Australian Olympic Committee values greatly this partnership with ACTAS as we head towards the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing,” Mr Coates said.

“By declaring ACTAS an official Olympic Training Centre we hope to give all Olympic hopefuls in Canberra and the region extra incentive to achieve their dream to represent Australia at the Games in Beijing and beyond.

“I pay tribute to the ACTAS athletes, coaches, sports scientists and administrators for the hard work and dedication shown since the academy was founded. Those efforts have produced excellent results at the elite level of sport.

“The ACT Government also deserves much of the credit, as this would not have been possible without their financial support.”

President of the ACT Olympic Council, Robin Poke, said ACTOC was delighted ACTAS was again being recognised by the AOC as an Olympic Training Centre.

“This is particularly noteworthy given the proximity of ACTAS to the AIS,” he said.

The ACTOC President also noted that a significant number of ACTAS athletes had been members of the Australian Olympic team in Athens last year.

“Triathlete Simon Thompson, cyclists Michael Rogers and Oenone Wood, shooter Matt Inabinet and the Canberra members of the women’s football team were among a number who all competed with great distinction,” he said.

“Since then most of these athletes have clearly signaled they intend being in contention for Beijing, while boxer Ged O’Mahoney continues to perform well, as does hockey player Nicki Arrold, while Sarah Taylor will surely want to be a Hockeyroo this time around having been injured so close to Athens last year.”

Mr Poke also noted that former ACTAS scholarship holder Sonia Mills had already become a world champion with the women’s rowing eight in Japan.

“All the portents are that there are great things still to come from ACTAS,” he said.

The timing of the AOC/ACTAS announcement is particularly appropriate.

Next Saturday, 12 November, it will be one thousand days until the Opening Ceremony in Beijing on 8 August 2008.