Aussie school kids enter exciting digital era of sport

In the lead up to the biggest annual football series in Australian sport, nbn has teamed up with NRL legends Wally Lewis and Brad Fittler, to bring the State of Origin spirit to regional footy fans via an innovative virtual coaching clinic.

Straddling the border of regional Queensland and New South Wales, budding players from Wallangarra State School were transported to Sydney’s ANZ Stadium via a high-definition video link. The virtual coaching lesson saw the State Of Origin greats, put the students through their paces in a series of warm-ups, drills, and plays on the field.

With almost two-thirds (65 per cent) of the country now consuming sport online*, the unique training session was set-up to demonstrate how new technology and access to fast broadband is revolutionising the way Australians train, participate in and view sport.

Sport presenter and former New South Wales State of Origin captain, Brad Fittler said:

“Australia is a nation of sports lovers and State of Origin is all about getting behind your state to cheer on your favourite team. The nbn™ Coaching Clinic was a great way of getting country kids closer to the action and having some fun ahead of the first game in the series. Whether they are learning sporting techniques via YouTube, or an athlete looking to use technology to train online, faster internet is allowing Aussies all over the country greater access to training tools, and encouraging them to be more active participants in sport.”

Sport commentator and former Queensland State of Origin captain, Wally Lewis said:

“The last time I played in a State of Origin final was in 1991 – years before the invention of smart-phones and tablets. The nbn™ Coaching Clinic is a great example of how faster internet is enabling Aussies no matter where they live to harness the latest technology to get closer to the sports they love."

Principal of Wallangarra State School, Scott Koch said:

“Connecting to the nbn™ network at Wallangarra has allowed our students to have access to information, experts, and now even footy legends which were previously unavailable due to the barriers such as time, distance and cost. We are only a small school of 57 students, so today’s coaching session was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to show our young athletes the types of resources that could set them up to become the next crop of sporting heroes.”

There are more than one million homes and businesses around the country that have connected to the nbn™ network, with the rollout designed to ensure that every Australian has access to fast broadband by 2020.

 

Gina Murphy	nbn™ Media Hotline
Phone: 0438 416 209	Phone: 02 9927 4200
Email: ginamurphy@nbnco.com.au	Email: media@nbnco.com.au

 

References

* Know the Fan, Global Sports Consumption Report 2014, Perform, Kantar Media and SportBusiness Group

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Notes to editors

About nbn:

• nbn is building a new and upgraded, fast wholesale broadband network to enable communities across Australia to access fast broadband from their retail service provider. Our goal is to connect eight million homes and businesses by 2020.
• Fast broadband, like that delivered via the nbn™ network, can provide a range of benefits for Australians such as opportunities to work from home, access to online education tools and options for on-demand entertainment.
• End-user experience, including the speeds actually achieved over the nbn™ network, depends on the technology over which services are delivered to your premises and some factors outside our control like equipment quality, software, broadband plans and how the end-user’s service provider designs its network. Access to your work network will depend on factors outside our control like your organisation’s IT policy and infrastructure.