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Cricket Australia In2Cricket Launch, Parliament House, 17 September 2008

17 September 2008

E&0E

Ladies and gentlemen

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you all here this evening as we prepare for another exciting summer of cricket.

It is a particular honour that we are joined by representatives of both the men's and women's Australian cricket teams and we realise that this is a very busy time for both.

Ricky and the boys are of course off on Sunday on one of the most challenging tours of world sport -the four test tour of India- and we all wish them every success.

Similarly the women will be kept occupied hosting both the Indians and the Kiwis in the lead up to the big one- Australia's hosting of the ICC world cup in march next year.

Whilst all of this will no doubt occupy much of our summers- days spent at the Adelaide oval or other magnificent ground or enjoying the entertainment courtesy of our televisions or radios- we also know that there is so much more to cricket than entertainment.

Cricket is tremendously powerful within our culture and communities.

Cricket can bring people together, boost our national pride, teach values and disciplines and of course get people active and healthy

I would like to commend Cricket Australia for their new in2CRICKET program designed to give boys and girls a chance to take part in a variety of activities to develop cricket, physical fitness, social skills, sportsmanship and an understanding of the game.

The emphasis is on fun and involvement.

As we all know we must remain vigilant in efforts to get kids healthy and active and certainly the government is focused on strengthening the links between sport and health

This will be the most significant investment into grassroots cricket by Cricket Australia in many years and aims to lift participation numbers across Australia

I know both sides of politics will support you in your quest to get more young kids physically active.

Once again, thank you for joining us here tonight and good luck as you face the challenges ahead.

ENDS

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