Inspired by the deeds of Australia’s all-conquering female athletes on the world stage, more than 200 teenaged female students from Greater Western Sydney turned Bankwest Stadium into a hive of athletic activity today at a Celebrating Girls In Sport Festival.
Bankwest Stadium was built for the fans and the community and there was no greater example of this as girls from high schools across the Parramatta Local Government Area poured through the gates of the Stadium that has quickly become part of the fabric of booming Western Sydney and a centre of celebration in our community.
Sydney Swifts head coach Briony Akle summed up the morning perfectly, saying: “Start somewhere and have a growth mindset. Every day you have challenges, but it doesn’t mean you give up. Every day when you wake up, think ‘what am I going to achieve today’?”
The young stars of tomorrow heard from a panel of successful women in sport that included MC Kira-Lea Dargin (NSW Coyotes & New York Wolves Gridiron player), Simaima Taufa (Sydney Roosters NRLW player), Briony Akle (Sydney Swifts netball head coach), Lexie Pickering (NSW hockey player), Sabrina Shaideen (Parramatta cricket), and Erin McKinnon (GWS Giants AFLW player).
They then took part in a series of activities on the Bankwest Stadium arena, including football, AFL, cricket, self-defence and League Stars.
City of Parramatta has been running the highly successful Celebrating Girls in Sport Festival since 2012 in the Local Government Area.
The objectives of the event are to:
- Encourage and promote increased participation by girls and women in sport;
- Create awareness of, and showcase what programs, services and employment opportunities exist within the sporting landscape;
- Celebrate the successful and inspiring women who are already achieving great things in the sporting domain;
- Educate and inform girls about healthy and active lifestyles; and
- Provide a networking and social opportunity for girls and young women through sport.
More than 500,000 fans have already passed through the turnstiles at Bankwest Stadium to witness sport and entertainment events since it opened to the public with a Community Open Day on Sunday 14 April.
An additional 27,000 people, including today’s school groups, have attended community, cultural and business events at the Stadium, which has become a thriving hub of community activity.
Bankwest Stadium is a 30,000-seat purpose-built rectangular stadium in Parramatta. It features the steepest grandstands in the country and superior sightlines from all seats, taking fans closer to the action than ever before.
Thirty-six sport and entertainment events have already been locked in for 2020, including the first concerts at the venue – Aussie rock legends Cold Chisel on Friday 24 January and global superstar Elton John on Saturday 7 March. Tickets to these shows are available here
Enquiries in relation to community, cultural and business events can be made via the Bankwest Stadium website www.bankweststadium.com.au
