Australian Rugby Union and Bond University today announced a new four-year partnership that will see the Gold Coast-based University become the Official Education Partner of the Qantas Wallabies.
The new partnership builds on the 2012 Gold Coast Sevens agreement between Bond University and ARU.
As part of the partnership, the Qantas Wallabies, Qantas Men’s and Women’s Sevens and Australian Under-20s sides will all have access to Bond University’s state-of-the-art training facilities both on campus and at Skilled Park in Robina when on the Gold Coast.
The sides will be able to utilise the University’s research facilities, the ‘Bond Institute of Health and Sport’ as well as the high performance unit’s testing facilities.
Bond University students will be provided the opportunity to work closely with ARU’s professional athletes, representative teams and coaches helping them gain greater knowledge and understanding of elite sporting sides.
Students will also benefit from the partnership with a number of students provided internships at Australian Rugby Union throughout the course of the partnership.
ARU CEO, Bill Pulver, welcomed the four-year partnership and said he was excited by the opportunities it presented.
“Australian Rugby Union and Bond University share a strong commitment to education and leadership,” Mr Pulver said.
“This partnership strengthens our ties to the Gold Coast and offers our national teams access to elite training venues and sports science facilities.
“The opportunity to be associated and work closely with Bond University on research projects and sports science projects is certainly an exciting prospect for Bond’s students, ARU and our national teams.”
Bond University’s Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Tim Brailsford said the four-year partnership was significant for the University, the Gold Coast and the local Rugby community.
“The Qantas Wallabies are the pinnacle of Australian Rugby and Bond University is a leader in education,” Professor Brailsford said.
“With our combined knowledge, resources and expertise, this partnership will offer opportunities, greater access and international connections for students and academics.
“Further, this partnership bodes well for the Rugby community and those Rugby groups associated with Bond.
“The partnership will give us the opportunity to work towards creating a gold-medal performance for the Men’s and Women’s Sevens teams in the 2016 Olympic Games and 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast,” he said.
The new partnership is already in full swing with Australia’s Under-20s team arriving on campus earlier this week for a training camp ahead of their trial match against Papua New Guinea later today.
The match, which kicks off at 3:00pm, will be played at Bond University’s Rugby field and is part of the U20s side’s preparations ahead of the IRB Junior World Championship in France in June.