The 2022 Katherine Roadshow
In October of 2022, Disability Sports NT held its first Activate Inclusion Sports Day (AISD) in Katherine as part of the inaugural DSNT Katherine Roadshow.
Held at The Y Katherine, the event thrived in a perfect environment with outstanding venue support from management. A major credit to the day’s operations were the NT Peak Sporting Bodies. They displayed a willingness to give time and funds to have staff at the event. Four sports were on offer for the participants - Golf, Tennis, Touch Football, and AFL. World Blind Golf to the NT to support Golf NT’s phenomenal set up on the day. AFL surprised all by bringing ex-AFL star Travis Varcoe from Darwin!
The aim of AISDs is to provide a welcoming environment for participants to engage positively in sport and recreational activities. The events hope to increase their self-efficacy to get active outside of school settings. Two young women enjoyed the AFL station so much that they joined later in the evening at the AFL NT Juniors Program in Katherine. Facilitated by their teacher at Kintore St, it is great to see vital community members invest in the wellbeing and future of their students.
Three students from the Stars Foundation volunteered on the day. Their help was invaluable whilst providing a strong learning experience for them.
Outside of the inaugural AISD, DSNT teamed up with Tennis NT to visit Mataranka Primary School and Barunga School and support their Hot Shots clinics. It was a privilege to make it out to community and give the students an experience to learn from. The level of talent was exciting. Students were met with a solid session at their levels with each group targeting different grades of ability and skill. Partnerships link directly to the purpose of DSNT. We are looking forward to building the service to communities from here.
We cannot wait to make it back out to Katherine and the surrounding communities next year!
[Image description: Jacinta from DSNT and Beth from Tennis NT, standing outside in front of a tennis net with six junior primary school students holding tennis racquets and pulling funny faces at the end of our session in Mataranka]
