ONE PURPOSE. ONE SYSTEM. ONE FUTURE: CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE TO SHAPE AUSTRALIAN HOCKEY

Hockey Australia’s Centre of Excellence will be more than a new home for the sport. It will bring to life a fully connected, holistic high-performance system designed to develop people, accelerate talent and create sustained international success.

At its heart, the Centre of Excellence is about bringing every element required for world-class performance together – athletes, coaches, scientists, analysts, support staff, technology, data and expertise – within one integrated national system.

One Purpose. One System. One Future.

Whilst the Centre will provide the physical hub, the system it anchors operates year-round and in every state and territory. It spans grassroots participation and talent identification through to national underage teams, the TA32 initiative and ultimately the Hockeyroos and Kookaburras.

Rather than drawing talent and knowledge into one location, the system is designed to extend it outward. The performance science, coaching, officiating and analytics developed at the Centre are intended to benefit state programs, clubs and pathways across the country, lifting standards wherever the game is played. The ambition is for the Centre to strengthen the entire hockey ecosystem – not just those who train within its walls.

It is a system designed to discover, develop, accelerate, perform and inspire.
For emerging athletes, that means a clearer and more connected journey through Australian hockey.

The development pathway will incorporate the Jillaroos and Burras, Australian Under 18 boys and girls and Australian A programs, while TA32 will provide a dedicated pathway to identify and accelerate national talent.

At the other end of that pathway sit the Hockeyroos and Kookaburras, with the entire system working towards Hockey Australia’s vision of being consistently Top 3 in the world, both on and off the field, by 2032.

Developing the next generation of Australian players is only one part of the system.
World-class coaches and support staff will work alongside athletes in a culture centred on growth, respect and unity, while leading-edge performance science, recovery and human performance expertise will help athletes maximise their potential.

Advanced technology, data capture, analytics and insights will further strengthen decision-making across the national program, creating a competitive advantage and ensuring Australia continues to evolve alongside the world’s leading hockey nations.

Athlete support and wellbeing will also sit at the heart of the model, ensuring players are provided with the holistic support required to thrive both on and off the field.

Hockey Australia Acting CEO David Thompson said the Centre represented an opportunity to fundamentally strengthen the way Australian hockey develops its people and pursues excellence.

“The Centre of Excellence is about much more than a building. It is about creating one connected system that gives our athletes, coaches and staff the best possible opportunity to succeed,” Thompson said.

“For the first time, we bring every element of our high-performance environment together – from development and TA32 through to our pathway programs, Hockeyroos and Kookaburras, performance science, wellbeing, technology and our people.

“We want an emerging athlete entering our national pathway to be able to see exactly where they can go and understand what is required to get there.

“They will be surrounded by world-class coaches, support staff, performance expertise and some of the best hockey players in the world. That daily connection to the standards and expectations of international hockey will be incredibly powerful.

“It is about creating an environment that identifies talent, accelerates development and prepares future Hockeyroos and Kookaburras to compete and win on the biggest stage.

“Just as importantly, we want the knowledge, innovation and expertise within the system to have an impact across Australian hockey. The Centre provides an opportunity to connect high performance, pathways, coaching, officiating and the broader game in a way we haven’t been able to before.

“Our ambition is to build a world-leading high-performance system that gives Australian hockey a genuine competitive advantage and positions us for sustained success through Brisbane 2032 and well beyond.”

The Centre’s physical environment will enable that system to operate at its best, with four international hockey pitches, specialist high-performance training facilities, an indoor hockey centre and integrated sports science and medicine capabilities.

Backed by a $165 million investment from the Western Australian Government and currently under development at Curtin University in Perth, the Centre will provide the platform for Hockey Australia to bring its high-performance vision together in one place.

Its legacy will ultimately be measured by far more than the facilities it delivers.
It will be measured by the athletes it discovers, the people it develops, the knowledge it creates, the performances it enables and the generations it inspires.

From a young player beginning their journey in hockey to a Hockeyroo or Kookaburra representing Australia on the world stage, the Centre of Excellence will connect the pathway through one purpose and one system – building the future of Australian hockey