SLSA raises the bar

ORGANISERS of the Surf Life Saving Australian Championships have been forced to overhaul safety procedures following the devastating deaths of three young men during competition.

As the Australian championships preprare to head back to Broadbeach for the next two years, internationally renowned risk adviser Paul Chivers says the sport is now much better placed to embrace the inherent dangers that come with an ocean environment after some serious changes were made to competition.

Mr Chivers, who runs the business risk-facilitator, works as a consultant on events and shows such as I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here and Formula One racing and has been an independent voice at Surf Lifesaving Australia’s (SLSA) Aussies carnival for the past six years.

After the death of Matthew Barclay in 2012 – the third in competition at Kurrawa Beach since 1996 – SLSA was forced to make the sport safer for the young competitors.

And as the Aussies get set to head back to Broadbeach, Mr Chivers said the sport was now “a benchmark internationally” for the processes they had implemented to ensure everything possible was done to keep competitors safe.

Barclay was the third competitor to die during the national sporting event on the Gold Coast. His death followed the lost of Saxon Bird, 19, in 2010, and Robert Gattenby in 1996.

“I use surf lifesaving as a benchmark internationally in terms of their processes,” Mr Chivers said.

“They’re ready now. When we look at events around the world, in terms of water response and safety, they’re … far superior in terms of their response and the level of due diligence they put into looking after their participants.

“It’s a credit to them. I’m very fortunate to have worked with these guys for the last six years and I’ve watched them grow – both in process and systems, in leadership – and it’s really exciting to see where they’re going.”

Mr Chivers’ role is not to be prescriptive, rather provide direction, if needed, or give confidence in the decisions made by SLSA’s administrative teams.

And he said the organisation was doing an outstanding job, with this week’s decision to shift its program forward by 24 hours to avoid a weather event that hit WA yesterday, a perfect example.

“Any environment they go into, they have the ability to assess the situation and make diligent decisions,” Mr Chivers said.

“Looking at (this week) when they’ve got weather coming in, they’ve made assertive and really proactive, informed decisions to change the schedule.”