Last year Amanda led the opening of a brand new Health, Sports and Fitness Centre in Albion, Sporting Wheelies – a purpose built facility with cutting edge equipment and Queensland’s first dedicated courts for the Paralympic sports of Goalball and Boccia — amid a global pandemic.
Now she has her eyes set a new challenge – transforming Albion into Australia’s Paralympic hub for the 2032 elite event. Amanda has the vision, the team and the insight into what athletes with disability need to elevate their game.
As CEO of Sporting Wheelies & Disabled Association, Amanda welcomes hundreds of people living with disability through the Albion gym doors. From everyday people seeking rehab from accidents, to Paralympians, Sporting Wheelies is dedicated to changing the game for people living with disability. Armed with some of Australia’s most knowledgeable Exercise Physiologists and the ability to build custom programs for people of all abilities, Amanda is confident Sporting Wheelies is equipped for an expansion.
With the 2032 Paralympics set to be in our backyard, Amanda has ambitions to build a dedicated hub fitted with a world-class gymnasium, numerous Boccia and Goalball courts, a Wheelchair Rugby court, hydrotherapy pool, and clubhouse with a delicious café. While most of us would take it for granted, the other big thing is airconditioning. People with a disability often have difficulty regulating their body heat so it is very important we can keep the temperature at an ambient level – especially through summer.
Not one to shy away from a challenge, Amanda joined Queensland Health in 2005 and took on the enormous feat of overseeing a $2 billion statewide budget. In 2007, she turned her attention to a planning and development role for the Queensland Children’s Hospital in South Brisbane, a facility that has become a lifeline and second home to many young Queenslanders and their families.
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