AIS hosts inaugural Indigenous basketball camp

06 August 2024

As proud Kokatha, Naghiralgal and Dauareb-Meriam man and AIS Alumni Patty Mills represents the green and gold in Paris, some of the country’s brightest basketball talents have gathered in Canberra for the first ever National Indigenous Performance Camp (NIPC).

Twenty-six athletes aged 15-17 came from across Australia to take part in the four-day live-in camp.

Over four days from 3-6 August, 26 athletes lived and trained just like Mills did when he was part of Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) at the AIS, a program that has also developed Paris 2024 Olympians Lauren Jackson, Joe Ingles and Cayla George.

“It’s been a really good experience training with some of the best Indigenous kids in the country and being surrounded by our culture, it’s been a great thing to be exposed to,” Tasmanian basketballer Lucy Aherne said.

Cooper Crowe, a Wiradjuri and Kamilaroi teen from Mudgee enjoyed improving his game and sharpening his skills.

“Being coached by some of the best coaches in Australia, I gained a lot of valuable stuff on the court and off as well, on being a better person,” he said.

The camp is the first major Indigenous performance pathway event, headed up by two of the country's most qualified coach educators Peter Lonergan and Kerry Williams.

The NIPC has been made possible through the Australian Government legacy funding that provides more opportunities for Indigenous young people through sport.

“The athletes come from all over Australia and have never been exposed to the level of elite facilities that we have here in Canberra,” CoE and Performance Pathways General Manager Peter Lonergan said.

“It is our hope that it inspires them to continue their basketball journey and reach high.”

Basketball Australia Indigenous Lead Pauly Vandenbergh said the AIS facilities helped take the camp to the next level describing them as second to none.

“The NIPC is an important opportunity for these athletes to immerse themselves in the life of an elite pathway athlete, eating, training and learning together as a team. Having these athletes all together for the first time here has really elevated the level of the camp.”

Cairns Taipans Assistant Coach and proud Indigenous man Kerry Williams is one of the head coaches involved and said its crucial to provide young Indigenous athletes with pathways for success.

“Investing in these young athletes is what it’s all about,” Williams said.

“We certainly didn’t have these opportunities when I was coming up through the ranks so to be a part of this is really special to me. There are so many talented Indigenous athletes across the country and to be able to bring them together with so many great mentors and coaches is an experience they will take with them for the rest of their lives.”