The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) and Triathlon Australia are jointly undertaking a comprehensive review of triathlon’s Olympic and Paralympic high performance programs, with the aim of resetting for future success.

AIS Refresh is a detailed strategic review process led by the AIS in collaboration with National Sporting Organisations.  

Triathlon’s AIS Refresh began immediately after the Tokyo Paralympic Games in September and will continue through to the end of this year. 

A Project Steering Group (PSG) of nine has been established, which includes senior members of the AIS, National Institute Network, one of Australia’s most decorated triathletes, Olympic silver medallist Michellie Jones and an independent HP peer reviewer, alongside Triathlon Australia executive. 

AIS Director of Sport Strategy and Investment Alex Newton will Chair the steering group. 

“AIS Refresh is an opportunity to refocus and reset a sport’s high performance program with the aim of making measurable progress and building sustainable medal-winning success,” Ms Newton said. 

“This is a thorough deep dive and in Triathlon Australia’s case we’ll be looking back over the last two Olympic and Paralympic cycles, which almost stretches across a decade, to understand what we need to maintain but more importantly where performance improvements can be made. The review process will reset the program to maximise success in Paris 2024, Los Angeles 2028 and Brisbane 2032.” 

 
The Triathlon Refresh project will review and provide recommendations on: 

Leadership, Culture & Governance 

Performance Planning 

Coaching and Daily Training Environment (DTE) 

Athlete Performance & Pathways 

 
The comprehensive review will be informed by key insights from the AIS Athlete Wellbeing Health Check, Pathway pulse project, stakeholder surveys and interviews, international best practice and the Tokyo Games Team Debrief. 

It will seek insights from stakeholders including current and former athletes, coaches and key operational delivery partners.  

 
The Triathlon Australia Elite Athlete Commission (TAEAC) encourages athletes and coaches to contribute to the review process. 
 
“The Elite Athlete Commission has engaged with the TA Board around the scope of the review and are enthusiastic about the commitment to seeking input from the wide variety of elite athletes who engage with the high performance systems,” Jonathan Goerlach, Paralympian and TAEAC Chair said.  

“The EAC strongly encourages all athletes and coaches to be productive contributors to this refresh review so that the outcomes, that will shape the future strategies, have clear input from those most affected.  We look forward to working with the TA Board on the processes and safeguards being put in place to ensure those opinions are heard and carefully curated to alleviate any concerns athletes may have about providing input.  

“It is promising to see the importance being placed on this by the AIS and the TA board with the full weight of resources being applied to ensure it is done professionally, fully and in a timely fashion so any potential changes can be implemented ahead of our next major games.” 

 
Triathlon Australia President Michelle Cooper said:  
 
“Importantly, these reviews will be undertaken by independent expert facilitators who have worked across a wide variety of sports, ensuring all participants have the confidence and support to provide robust feedback. 

“Despite many successes on the international stage since the 2018 Commonwealth Games, our recent Olympic and Paralympic results haven’t been what we believe we are capable of. Triathlon Australia welcomes this opportunity to shape our future strategy, with a specific focus on the next two Olympic and Paralympic cycles.  

“The past 18 months have presented many challenges for our athletes, coaches and performance team on the road to Tokyo. It’s important these are reflected through the Games Team Debrief, to learn from these and better equip us to face disruption and challenges in the future.  

“A review is essential after any Games period and is an important part of Triathlon Australia’s long-term performance planning and commitment to continuous improvement, directly linked to our Winning When it Matters strategic pillar. With this review, we’ve expanded that even further. 
 
“There is no one better placed than the AIS to partner with on a review such as this. They have the knowledge and experience in taking many sports through similar processes to a successful outcome and we believe triathlon will benefit greatly from that.”  

Project Steering Group Members 

• Alex Newton, AIS – Director of Sport Strategy and Investment (PSG Chair)
• Peter Conde, AIS – CEO
• Michelle Cooper, Triathlon Australia - President
• Stuart Corbishley, Triathlon Australia – Vice President 
• Miles Stewart, Triathlon Australia – CEO 
• Michellie Jones, Triathlon Expertise
• Kevin Thompson, NIN Representative
• Chelsea Warr, NIN Representative
• Tamara Sheppard, Independent Peer Reviewer