Sweet Support for New Paralympic Foundation
20 January 2016 at 9:46 am
The Australian Paralympic Committee has received a $1 million donation from confectionary giant Cadbury to kick off the launch of its new fundraising arm, the Australian Paralympic Foundation.
The donation comes as the Australian Olympic Committee (APC) hopes to send 170 athletes from 15 sports to the Paralympic Games in Rio, Brazil this September.
John Hartigan, Former Chief Executive of News Ltd, who joined the board of the Australian Paralympic Committee in 2015 said the cost of ensuring the athletes got the chance to compete relied on generous public donations and it was predicted the APC would need to raise $7 million to fund its Rio 2016 campaign.
“A majority of APC funding for Australian Paralympic Teams is generated from donations such as Cadbury’s, making this initiative a vital lifeline. The creation of the Australian Paralympic Foundation will unify existing APC fundraising activities and partnerships under one division with a long term ambition to pave the way to a sustainable financial future for the Australian Paralympic Team,” Hartigan said.
“The Rio 2016 Paralympic Games are fast approaching and we are committed to making sure every team member selected to compete makes it to the starting line. Following tremendous support last year from public and private donations we are halfway to reaching our funding goals. The Australian Paralympic Foundation exists to ensure no athlete will be left behind due to monetary barriers when they should be representing our country in Rio.
“The foundation structure and fundraising activities will support a new era of sporting success in Australia. We are here to help every individual reach their full sporting potential and ultimately represent Australia at future Paralympic Games.”
Category Director of Chocolate at Cadbury, Kjetil Undhjem, said the donation formed part of their wider mission to get Australians behind the Olympic and Paralympic games.
“Cadbury will also kick off a nationwide digital activation to demonstrate their support for the team on Australia Day, 26 January, inspiring Aussies to get behind the para-athletes,” Undhjem said.
