Seventy emerging Para athletes from across Australia have gathered at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) on Friday for the inaugural Libby Kosmala Para Futures Cup, and for the woman whose name the event bears, seeing them together resonated particularly deeply.

“I decided I wanted to meet people like me,” Kosmala (pictured below) said, recalling her own introduction to disability sport more than half a century ago.

“The opportunities now are so much greater than they were when I was a young person. I think it’s unbelievable how much it’s changed, and I’m very excited about it.”

The three day, multi-sport event brings together athletes aged 13 to 32, all identified through dedicated Para Sport Units established nationwide through the historic Para System Uplift, led by the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) and Paralympics Australia (PA) with the National Institute Network.

Across 12 sports, they will represent Team North, Team South, Team East – photographed above and coached by New South Wales Institute of Sport’s Paul Nunnari, a Paralympic silver medallist, and Team West, earning points towards the inaugural Cup while exploring where their abilities might best be applied.

For more than four decades, the AIS has been a beacon of Australian high performance sport, producing generations of Paralympians, Olympians and some of the nation’s most celebrated sporting names.

Most of the athletes participating this weekend are new to Para sport, identified by talent scouts on their future potential attributes that could translate to high performance sport. For some, Canberra marks a first interstate trip, a first time away from a parent or a first experience among so many people with disability.

An official opening ceremony was hosted by AIS Para Unit System Lead and four-time Winter Paralympian Mitch Gourley, with Ngunnawal Elder Serena Williams delivering a Welcome to Country and conducting a smoking ceremony.

Kieren Perkins OAM, ASC Chief Executive Officer, welcomed the athletes to what he described as an “incredibly exciting” moment for Australian Para sport.

“This event has been created for you,” Perkins said. “Compete fiercely. Support your teammates. Ask questions. Learn from coaches and other athletes around you, and be proud that you’re the very first competitors in the inaugural Para Futures Cup.”

By late afternoon, the nerves had largely dissipated and the newly formed teams had their first chance to compete together, with boccia putting the first points in Para Futures Cup history on the board – Team North emerged with the early advantage, collecting 100 performance points ahead of Team East on 80, Team West on 65 and Team South on 50.

1st: North (QAS / NTIS)

2nd: East (NSWIS / ACTAS)

3rd: West (WAIS / SASI)

4th: South (VIC / TIS)

Competition continues on Saturday, when the four teams will contest powerlifting, goalball and table tennis across the AIS. Away from the competitive arena, athletes will also engage in education and mentoring sessions with Paralympians from past Games and other experts from across the industry.

Growing up, Kosmala knew almost nobody else with disability and eventually sought out a small group of boys playing wheelchair basketball in Adelaide. She went on to represent Australia at 12 Paralympic Games, winning 13 medals, including nine gold, predominantly in shooting.

Her advice to those at the AIS today?

“You don’t know how lucky you are to mix with people similar to yourself. It’s very important. Stick together, take phone numbers, find out where they live – get to know the people that you’re with while you’re here.”

“There’s lots of work ahead,” she said. “You have to really put your mind to it. Ask for help if you need it and work hard.”

Funded by the Australian Government, the Para System Uplift has increased access to coaching, classification, equipment, training environments and athlete support, with more than 150 new athletes supported since 2024.

For Kosmala, seeing a new generation gathered at the AIS today, afforded opportunities she could scarcely have imagined, is particularly poignant.

“And now today, this magnificent stadium, the magnificent facilities – the best in the world …here in Canberra, at the AIS,” she said, “it is fantastic.”

Beside Kosmala for much of her remarkable career has been husband Stan, himself a three-time Paralympian, and still, by his own admission, trying to keep up.

“She’s an inspiration. Full of energy. Keeps going,” he said.

“She exhausts me all the time. I have difficulty keeping up with her.”

There appears little prospect of that changing this weekend, with Kosmala planning to try some of the sports herself.

The Libby Kosmala Para Futures Cup will continue over the weekend and conclude with the inaugural trophy presentation on Monday.

Australian Sports Commission/Paralympics Australia

Tags Paul Nunnari

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