Our history

The ASC is a corporate Commonwealth entity within the Australian Government’s Department of Health portfolio. It was established on 13 September 1984, when the then Prime Minister, the Honourable Bob Hawke, and Minister for Sport, the Honourable John Brown, announced the membership of the Commission and its terms of reference. The ASC was formally established by the Australian Sports Commission Act 1985.

The Australian Government announced its decision in August 1987 to rationalise federal assistance to Australian sport. As a result, the AIS – first established as a public company under the Australian Capital Territory’s Companies Ordinance in 1981 – was amalgamated with the ASC. The Commission subsequently became the principal Australian Government agency responsible for sport in accordance with the revised Australian Sports Commission Act 1989.

Our role

The ASC is governed by a board of commissioners appointed by the Minister for Sport. The Board determines the ASC’s overall direction, decides on allocation of resources and policy for delegated decisions, and is accountable to the Minister for Sport.

The ASC plays a central leadership role in the development and operations of the Australian sport system, including providing investment and support to NSOs to achieve Australia’s Winning Edge targets and delivering programs under Play.Sport.Australia. The ASC also acts as the leading sports agency in Australia, building collaboration, alignment and effectiveness within the Australian sport sector.

The ASC works together with our partners, recognising that a shared approach that brings together expertise from a range of organisations will deliver greater results than any single agency working alone.

The ASC has staff and offices across Australia and is headquartered at the AIS campus in Bruce, Canberra, a 65-hectare multipurpose facility with sporting, administration, commercial and residential functions. The ASC also has 12 regional offices across Australia which support the Sporting Schools program and high performance centres in Pizzey Park on the Gold Coast and at the AIS European Training Centre in the Italian province of Varese.

Organisational structure

• Australian Sports Commission - Chief Executive officer - Simon Holllingsworth
• Australian Sports Commission - Chief Financial Officer - Fiona Johnstone
• • Australian Institute of Sport - Director (AIS) - Matt Favier
  • • Athletes, Coaching and Leadership - Deputy Director - Andrew Logan
    • High Performance - Deputy Director - Dean Kenneally
    • Performance Investment - Deputy Director - Robert Medlicott (Acting)
    • Performance Preparation - Deputy Director - Phil Borgeaud
    • Peformance Science and Innovation - Deputy Director - Nick Brown
  • Participation and Sustainable Sports - General Manager - Michael Thomson
  • • Sport Governance & Business Capability - Deputy General Manager - Michael Johnston
    • Sport Insights - Deputy General Manager - Paul Fairweather
    • Sports Participation - Deputy General Manager - Geoff Howes
    • Sponsorship & Business Development - Director - Kelvin McAlpine
  • Corporate Operations - General Manager - Steve Jones
  • • AIS Site Services - Deputy General Manager - Sue Minter
    • Digital Information Management & Technology- Deputy General Manager - Steven Stolk
    • Finance - Deputy General Manager/CFO - Fiona Johnstone
    • People Capability & Communications- Deputy General Manager - Carolyn Brassil
    • Legal - Corporate Counsel - Paul Barrett