Former hockey president, finance adviser chosen as member for Queensland Academy of Sport advisory panel

As the state government begins transitioning the Queensland Academy of Sport to an independent body, an advisory panel has been chosen. See why this former hockey president has been picked.

Annette Maidment, pictured with Mundingburra MP Janelle Poole, has been named on the Advisory Board established for Queensland Academy of Sport. Picture: Shae Beplate.

A Townsville business woman chosen as the only regional voice for the new Queensland Academy of Sport’s advisory panel has vowed to fight for young North Queensland athletes.

Annette Maidment is a through and through Queenslander who is bringing years of experience working with the next generation of sports stars to the state government’s new eight-member panel.

The newly appointed board is part of the State’s Government road map to transition the QAS (Queensland Academy of Sports) to a statutory body in the lead up to the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games.

The move for its independence comes after a submission from a group of Queensland sports administrators and former Olympians, stating the QAS had been hindered by government bureaucracy and was failing to provide high performance training, leadership and effective processes to ensure athletes were supported.

As the only regional voice among the panel, Ms Maidment said it was vital that a spotlight was shone on North Queensland athletes.

Annette Maidment, has been named on the Advisory Board established for Queensland Academy of Sport. Picture: Shae Beplate.

“A lot of the time our athletes up here get told that they need to move to Brisbane to access those services and as we are moving into the golden decade of 2032 it is really important that we try and identify athletes early and then give them every opportunity so they can succeed,” she said.

President of the Townsville Hockey Association for a number of years, Ms Maidment brings with her expert knowledge of improving clubs from the ground up, especially in the face of adversity.

“I went through the 2019 floods where both turfs got totally destroyed,” she said.

“We had to seek a high level of government funding to get them replaced and we did that inside 13 weeks so that we could host two state championships.”

“Once we recovered from that we went through the Covid era, so it was an interesting five year tenure.”

Ms Maidment also brings her extensive financial experience to the board from her role as the chief financial officer at the property development company, Maidment Group.

Mundingburra MP, Janelle Poole said this was an exciting time for Townsville especially as Olympic and Paralympic organisers look North to host highly prestigious events.

“It’s such a great coup to have Annette as that regional voice, the only regional choice, and it is something that the regions have missed out on for so long,” she said.

“Make no mistake, we will be pushing for a bigger regional representation here by the QAS, whatever that looks like.”

The advisory panel will hold its first meeting later this month.

Originally published as Former hockey president, finance adviser chosen as member for Queensland Academy of Sport advisory panel