16th October 2026
Author: Maree DeGeorge
Melbourne, VICTORIA – Celebrating progress, sharing ideas and recognising the people making a difference were at the heart of the 2026 Women in Sport Breakfast, where Basketball Victoria’s Anita Diano received a Community Award for her contribution to women and girls in basketball.
Held at CENTREPIECE Melbourne on Friday 9 October, the Women Sport Australia event, presented by Level Up Collective, brought together people from across sport under the theme A Seismic Shift. The morning explored the growing momentum in women’s sport and how we can all help turn that momentum into lasting change.
Basketball Victoria supported the breakfast as a sponsor, with women and men from across the organisation filling two tables to listen, learn and celebrate alongside others working towards greater equity in sport.
Speakers including Georgie Purcell, Lydia Williams, Chris Jones, Holly Ransom and Jen Watt explored the importance of investment, visibility and leadership in advancing women’s sport. A fireside chat featuring Libby Trickett, Geena Dunne and Belle Brockhoff also considered the barriers women and girls face in getting involved and staying involved.
A special highlight for the Basketball Victoria team was seeing Anita recognised for her work as Play Our Way Project Officer and her contribution as a volunteer coach.
Through Play Our Way, Anita exceeded her target of engaging 20,000 girls in schools six months ahead of schedule, helping introduce more girls to basketball. Lead Your Way, a leadership initiative within Play Our way has also supported young women to develop their leadership skills and explore opportunities within the game.
These opportunities are made possible by Australian Government federal funding under the Department of Health and Aged Care’s Play Our Way program. Basketball Victoria thanks the Australian Government for this important support, helping us deliver clinics and initiatives that enable more women and girls to participate and lead in basketball.
Anita’s commitment continues on the court, where she volunteers her time to coach and mentor players while investing in her own development.
Basketball Victoria’s Women and Girls Participation Manager, Leah Swain, said the breakfast was an opportunity to celebrate the people behind that progress and learn from others across sport.
“It was great to have women and men from across our Basketball Victoria team come along, hear different perspectives and think about how we can each help create more opportunities for women and girls,” Swain said.
“There’s so much good work happening across sport and coming together gives us the chance to share ideas and learn from each other.
“Seeing Anita recognised made the morning even more special. She puts so much care and energy into her work, helping girls give basketball a go and supporting young women to grow their confidence and leadership skills. We’re really proud of her and the difference she’s making.”
Events like the breakfast create space to hear experiences beyond our own sport and reflect on what we can do better within our basketball communities. Those lessons can shape everything from the welcome a girl receives at her first training session to the opportunities available for women to coach, officiate and lead.
It is an approach that reflects Basketball Victoria’s Together, We Raise the Game campaign and its call to Ask. Learn. Improve. By asking questions, listening to women and girls, and putting what we learn into practice, we can help more people feel welcome, supported and able to contribute.
Congratulations to Anita on this well-deserved recognition and thank you to Women Sport Australia for bringing the sporting community together to share, learn and keep moving forward.
-Ends-
Help raise the game in your community. Visit Together, We Raise the Game, for practical resources to support your association, or explore the Play Our Way page on our website, to find out how to get involved.
