Efforts to include Australians from NESB backgrounds
People from non-English-speaking backgrounds are significantly less likely to participate in organised sport in Australia. But for one Canberra refugee, overcoming barriers to sport participation was one of the first things he did upon arriving in the country.
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TVTranscript
00:00 Walking into a kickboxing ring is daunting to most people, but not to Amir Jafari.
00:07 He's fought against plenty of tough opponents. The only difference for this fight is that
00:14 he's in Australia.
00:17 The Australian community, especially my coaches, have helped me find a place to train and prepare.
00:23 This is just the first step and I'm looking forward to being the best I can be.
00:29 Amir was born in Iran and at 14 moved to Turkey, where he continued to rise through the kickboxing
00:34 ranks. After 10 years in Turkey, he and his family finally immigrated to Australia almost
00:40 a year ago.
00:43 Australia feels like a home to me. People have treated me well and with respect.
00:48 Just 13% of Australian adults who speak a language other than English at home participate
00:53 in sport through a club or association at least once a year. Many barriers prevent refugees
00:59 like Amir joining their beloved sport.
01:02 The first challenge was I do not speak the language. Also, I wasn't really familiar with
01:07 the place I had come to.
01:09 Danielle Sweetman from the Red Cross sees the challenges and the benefits of sport participation
01:15 first hand. She's helped get Amir and many other Canberra refugees to the sporting arena.
01:21 When I know of one of our clients interested in participating in someone, I just do my
01:26 best to try and facilitate them with that opportunity.
01:29 By immersing himself in the martial arts community, Amir has done just that.
01:34 We've seen him bringing his friends and family into the gym to watch him train along to fights
01:39 and stuff like that. So it's been really good seeing them become part of our community as
01:42 well.
01:43 Amir's ambitions are clear.
01:47 I'll give this commitment to the Australian Government. I will do my best to try and represent
01:53 Australia at the international level, at the Olympics, God willing.
01:57 His first win in Australia, with many more ahead.
01:59 [BLANK_AUDIO]