Corporate Australia fires up the barbie as Flight Centre Travel Group, Corporate Traveller and Stage and Screen rally behind Australia’s next sporting champions.

Corporate Australia has found a simple way to back our next sporting stars. Fire up the barbie. Open the wallet. And make sure talent is not beaten by the cost of reaching the starting line.

The Aussie Athlete Fund (AAF) marked a major fundraising milestone at Flight Centre Travel Group’s Brisbane headquarters on Monday, 26 October. More than 100 guests joined the launch of the Great Aussie Athlete BBQ summer campaign. Corporate Traveller and Stage and Screen backed the event.

According to figures supplied by the organisers, the fund’s athletes have raised more than $1.08 million during 2026. The AAF reported $754,100 for its 2025 challenge. A public event announcement also confirmed the $1 million milestone. It is a big win for competitors whose toughest contest may be with their bank balance.

Medals Don’t Pay for Airfares

Five-time Olympian Natalie Cook OAM founded the AAF to help young athletes meet the cost of elite sport. Think flights, camps, coaches, gear and recovery. The bills arrive well before the medals. And few airlines offer a discount for sporting promise.

The fund cites 2023 research from the Australian Sports Foundation. It found that almost half of adult elite athletes earn less than $23,000 a year from all sources. Behind each national uniform is often a family paying bills, or an athlete trying to work between training sessions.

“I’m the brainchild behind all of this because it’s my lived experience: 20 years, five Games. I’ve reverse engineered what it took to fundraise,” Cook said at the launch.

“We’ve been working with our athletes for the last three years, teaching them how to ask, who to ask, when to ask, how often to ask, and to never take no for an answer.”

The AAF does more than collect donations. It offers direct support, fundraising lessons, mentors and help with life after sport. Careers can be short. Bills tend to last longer.

Travel Industry Backs the Green and Gold

Flight Centre founder Graham “Skroo” Turner welcomed guests. He called on businesses to back Australian athletes. The travel trade has good reason to listen. Flights to training camps and events, often overseas, can eat through a modest budget.

Corporate Traveller is the group’s travel specialist for small and medium businesses. It sees a link between sporting goals and the drive of growing companies.

“We work with thousands of small and medium businesses chasing big dreams, and we know what it takes to back someone willing to give everything. Athletes are no different,” said global managing director Tom Walley.

Stage and Screen also sponsored the evening. It works with groups such as Paralympics Australia, Commonwealth Games Australia and Swimming Australia.

“Every athlete in the room has a story, and behind it is a family, a support crew and a lot of early mornings,” said Wonitta Atkins, Stage and Screen’s general manager for Australia.

More than applause was on offer. The AAF selected 32 athletes for its Elevate program. Each received $5,000, plus education and other support. Six award categories also received an additional $5,000 each, according to organisers.

Beach volleyball player Luke Ryan won Biggest Fundraiser. Organisers put his total at $47,252. Deaf footballer Justeen Kruger was named All-rounder. Fencer Daniel Iliffe took Rising Star. Water polo player Tenealle Fasala won Standout Event, and sailor Sophie Jackson won Creative Content. Archers Ryan Tyack and Lexie Feeney shared Media Excellence.

A Barbecue With a Bigger Purpose

Now the campaign moves from boardrooms to backyards, schools and clubs. Australians can host a BBQ and raise money. Kits start at $99.

The launch set a summer target of $500,000 and 500 kits sold. Details are on the Aussie Athlete Fund website. Hosts can share their efforts using #BackTheGreenAndGold.

The Brisbane Olympic Games open on 23 July 2032. That seems a long way off. For the athletes hoping to be there, costs are rising now. A handshake in six years will be too late.

Australians rarely run short on cheers when someone wins gold. The harder task is paying for the journey before anyone knows their name.

 

By: Octavia Koo – © 2026.

Read Time: 3 minutes.

 

Author Bio:

Octavia Koo arrived in Australia in the early eighties with little fuss and a good eye. Sydney suited her. At UNSW, she studied Arts, then found her footing in graphic design before drifting, quite naturally, into the digital side of things, building websites and shaping words that made people want to stay.

Singapore followed, and with it, the fast pace of tourism platforms and ITB Asia. Long before SEO became a buzzword, Octavia understood how stories travelled online. That’s where she met Stephen, and the seed for something more was planted.
A few years later, she joined Stephen’s EGT Media.

Today, Octavia works with quiet assurance, blending art, instinct and experience to produce stories that don’t shout; they simply work and linger.

 

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