Australia’s Olympic athletes will benefit greatly from a new partnership with the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) which will allow them to be based in Italy and other parts of Europe to train prior to the London Games in 2012.

Under the Co-operation Agreement between the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) and the CONI, Australian athletes will also have access to medical and physiotherapy treatment.

The Agreement signed in Acapulco, Mexico, at the Association of National Olympic Committees’ Assembly, stretches to the end of 2016 with an option to renew for a further four years to 2020.

Rome is considering a bid for the 2020 Olympic Games and if successful would make the Co-operation Agreement even more valuable to Australian athletes.

“The Agreement opens the door for our Olympic sports to put in place initiatives they consider will support their pre-London plans and beyond,” AOC President John Coates said.

It is expected that under the Agreement the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) will strike a deal with its equivalent in Italy, the CONI Institute, to exchange sports science, sports medicine, high performance and coaching expertise.

There is the added benefit of the European Training Centre at Varese in northern Italy, which is funded by the Federal Government and controlled by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC). The centre is due to commence operations in December.

“Providing our athletes with access to similar levels of sports medicine and science they enjoy in Australia is a critical part of elite athletes’ preparation for international competition,” Coates said.

“When you combine having a base in Europe with access to good competition and sports science, it means Aussie athletes have a viable option to base themselves in Europe.“

By avoiding the expense of flying to and from Australia during the qualification events throughout 2011 and in the key competition months before the London Games it will make a big difference to those sports with heavy European race calendars.

“Reducing the ‘tyranny of distance’ will mean our sports’ limited funding can stretch that much further,” Coates said.

Many Australian athletes will train and compete in the UK and Europe prior to the London Games to acclimatise to the northern hemisphere summer.

Italian athletes will also come to Australia for training camps. It is anticipated they will come during the long European winters when Australia is in the height of summer. This will help engage our athletes in sports in which we are not traditionally strong and will improve from international competition.

Coaching staff from both nations also stand to benefit from a sharing of knowledge.

Similar preparations were supported by the AOC prior to the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2008 Games in Beijing with great success.

AOC