Who can apply for a SASI Individual Athlete Scholarship?

To be eligible for a scholarship, applicants must be:

• An Australian Citizen.
• Competing in a sport and discipline and classification represented at the Olympic, Paralympic or Commonwealth Games.
• Able to demonstrate the ability to be selected onto the next national team for the international benchmark event relevant to their age, e.g. Senior/U23/Junior World Championships.
• Registered as a competitor with a South Australian State Sporting Organisation (SSO) that is affiliated with a National Sporting Organisation (NSO) that is recognised by Sport Australia. (Please note that the SSO must be recognised as the peak state body).
• Engaged in a comprehensive program of intensive training and international competition (if available).
• Intending to compete in their sport throughout the scholarship period or be engaged in a planned rehabilitation program for the next 12 months or part thereof.

Who can apply for a SASI Country Athlete Award?

To be eligible for an Award, applicants must be:

• An Australian Citizen.
• A South Australian athlete with their primary residence 130km or more from the Adelaide GPO. Kangaroo Island residents are eligible to apply.
• Competing in a sport and discipline and classification represented at the Olympic, Paralympic or Commonwealth Games.
• Registered as a competitor with a South Australian SSO that is affiliated with a NSO that is recognised by Sport Australia. (Please note that the SSO must be recognised as the peak state body).
• Aged between 13 and 18 inclusive, on 31 December 2023.
• Recognised as having the ability to reach the senior elite level of competition.
• Recognised as having the potential to transition into a SASI sport program or Individual Athlete Scholarship.
• Competing at a high level nationally at age championships or on a trajectory to compete at that level within 2 years.
• Engaged in a comprehensive program of training and competition.
• Intending to compete in their sport throughout the following 12 month period or be engaged in a planned rehabilitation program for the next 12 months or part thereof.

SASI Individual Athlete Scholarships are not available to athletes who are scholarship holders in a SASI sport program. Athletes in sports where SASI conducts a program applicable to their age group for the full period of the scholarship are also ineligible.

SASI Individual Athlete Scholarship

The Individual Athlete Scholarships provide financial assistance to offset the costs associated with high performance training, competition and equipment.

Financial assistance and performance support servicing will be tiered according to the athlete’s sport categorisation along with their recent performances and future potential at benchmark events.*

Benefits additional to the financial assistance will be available on a case-by-case basis. Benefits may include:

• Use of SASI facilities and training venues;
• Sport science and sport medicine servicing;
• Athlete career development assistance.

* Benchmark events – The highest ranked event each year specific to your sport at the appropriate age and level i.e. World Championships.

SASI Country Athlete Award

The SASI Country Athlete Award offers financial assistance to talented junior athletes, who are performing at a national level or on the trajectory to compete at this level within two years in a sport and discipline and classification represented at the Olympic, Paralympic or Commonwealth Games. This Award targets athletes from rural areas to offset expenses that may be incurred in:

• The implementation of a training and competition program.
• Travel and accommodation not met by the club, State or National Sporting Organisation.
• The purchase and maintenance of training and competition equipment.

Country Athlete Award recipients will have demonstrated through their sporting achievements, an outstanding ability to progress to the senior elite level. Athletes who have been identified by the SASI Talent Search Program or a National Talent Identification Program in their sport will also be considered.

Please be aware that the online application contains mandatory questions that will not let you submit until answered. In several cases the responses are required for an application to be considered eligible.

Applicants may be required to accurately provide the following information:

• The applicant’s sport and the targeted event/discipline.
• Which State Sporting Organisation the applicant is registered with and the registration/licence number.
• Contact details for the High Performance Director (If applying for the Individual Athlete Scholarship).
• Contact details for the applicant’s coach.
• Three best sporting achievements in the past 12 months at International, National and State levels.
• What the estimated total cost of the applicant’s sport is over the next 12 months.
• Disability Classification (if applicable).
• The applicant’s Australian Business Number (ABN) is entered correctly and matches the legal name (if applicable).
• If the applicant does not have an ABN, you will need to submit a completed Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Statement by Supplier Form with your application, otherwise 46.5% of any approved grant may be withheld. Download the Statement by Supplier form from the ATO.

All attachments must be submitted with your SmartyGrants application. Attachments and/or other information not submitted in the applicant’s SmartyGrants application may not be considered through the assessment process.

Please note it is not possible to approve all requests; therefore funding should not be deemed automatic or anticipated. Please ensure you follow the helpful hints on each question.

STEP 1 – Application Screening

Once the round has closed, applications are screened to check that:

• The applicant is eligible to apply, and
• The application has been completed in full.

If an application fails to pass eligibility screening, the applicant will be contacted via email, using the details provided in the application. The online application form will be reopened for the applicant to update and resubmit.

If an application is not resubmitted before the first day of the assessment by the Funding Assessment Committee, the application may be deemed withdrawn.

During the screening process, ORSR may request further information.

Incomplete applications may be deemed ineligible.

STEP 2 – Assessment against principles

The Funding Assessment Committee assess all applications.

Where an application is deemed eligible, the Funding Assessment Committee will take into consideration the performance achievements of the applicant, along with any evidence of unethical behaviours or integrity issues.

NSO’s/SSO’s will also be consulted during the assessment process.

The Funding Assessment Committee will assess the application against the relative merits of other applications in meeting the assessment principles.

Please note, satisfying the assessment principles alone does not guarantee the receipt of funding. It is anticipated that the number of eligible applications and funds sought will exceed the funds available and therefore ORSR does not guarantee applicants will be successful, nor that successful applicants will receive the full amount of funding requested.

The Funding Assessment Committee may request additional information during the Committee’s sitting period. Applicants should be aware that additional information may be requested.

STEP 3 - Recommendations

Once the assessment is completed, the Funding Assessment Committee will provide funding recommendations to the Chief Executive, ORSR, for consideration.

Please be aware that the amount of funding recommended may be lower than the amount requested.

All applicants will be notified in writing of the outcome of their grant application.

ORSR understands that unexpected events may delay the expenditure of a grant. In these circumstances, grantees can request a variation to the expiry date of the grant agreement. Any request must be submitted through SmartyGrants. Requests may require the following details:
* The reason and justification for the variation.
* Timeframe implications.

If an extension request is submitted, ORSR reserves the right to approve or decline the request. In some circumstances ORSR may approve a more appropriate extension date.

To seek a variation, email ORSR.Grants@sa.gov.au with your application identification number and ORSR will forward a variation request form to complete on SmartyGrants.

SASI IAP does not allow for an increase to the agreed amount of grant funds as set out in the grant agreement.