CALL ME UP
Townsville athletics star’s push for major change
QUALIFICATION for the Tokyo Olympics is looming but a Townsville prospect’s path is still clouded in uncertainty.
Tori West has been in limbo since the coronavirus pandemic seized the nation, unsure about how she can navigate her way to Japan.
It has been six months since she last heard from Athletics Australia, and the 25-year-old heptathlete says this was a continuing theme.
Even as she prepares for the upcoming Queensland State Championships on December 19 in Brisbane – her first chance since the pandemic to accrue Olympic qualification points – she said that she received no insights into how the competition would unfold.
West said the recent appointments of Australian Olympic legends Sally
Pearson and Leisel Jones to Athletics Australia’s high performance department seemed like a step in the right direction.
But assistance needed to be equal.
Former hurdling gold medallist Pearson has joined as a technical athlete consultant, while Jones will fulfil her duties as an athlete wellbeing and engagement co-ordinator.
The breaststroke superstar said her role would be focused on working with Australian hopefuls to “develop their skills in pursuit of world-class performance”.
However as she continues to remain out of the loop about how she can get to the 2021 showcase, West said she was sceptical as to whether these changes would produce results for up-and-coming athletes.
So desperate had West’s situation become to get the competition and support she needs to thrive, she had called on friends in her athletics community to compete in certain events at her upcoming meet to truly test her credentials.
“I’ve had absolutely no correspondence from Athletics Australia, no calls or emails, or a simple check-in to see how it’s going, or clarification around how we can start a game plan and make sure we get to the Olympics,” West said.
“Sally’s appointment is more as a consultant, she can’t work with every athlete, that’s impossible.
“She’s one person with a lot to give, but it sounds like she’ll mostly be working with hurdlers.
“For Leisel Jones, when you think about the amount of athletes in high performance and she comes from swimming background, I don’t know how effective it will be in knowing their story and providing actual help.
“Just open up the communication a bit more, let all athletes be involved in the planning of competitions and pathways.”
The Pearson and Jones announcements coincided in a promising phase for the athletics body, with the AIS committing $115m to Olym
pic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games sports.
While West again applauded these moves, she said it would come down to who the money actually supported.
West told the Townsville Bulletin in June that she was self-funded in her endeavours and communication between the sport’s governing body and herself had been near non-existent.
Now, as her preparations intensify, she said greater clarification was needed to know how all athletes could be supported in supplementing travel, equipment and resource expenses.
“Funding initiatives sound
good, it always comes down to who’s handling the money though,” West said.
“There’s no clarity around what you need to do as an athlete to get funding. I know athletes who are record holders in certain events who haven’t received funding all year.
“What do I need to do to qualify for funding to supplement the expenses I’m paying to travel overseas, get javelins? What do I need to do to get AIS money to support me to represent this country?
“It’s great all these things are announced, I really hope it does work out, but I’m really sceptical on how it will be delivered.”