The Victorian Institute of Sport was established by the Victorian State Government in 1990 as a private trustee company, with its Board of Directors appointed by the Victorian Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events. The Victorian Institute of Sport is located at Lakeside Stadium, Albert Park and takes advantage of Melbourne’s world class sporting facilities, to allow high performance athletes to live and train in Melbourne.
More than 400 athletes (both able-bodied and athletes with disability) from a wide range of sports receive high performance services through scholarship programs. Services and support provided to athletes include specialised coaching, sport science and sports medicine services, physical preparation, education and career advice and competition support.
The Victorian Institute of Sport also provides services to connect with the broader community. These services include high performance facility tours for school groups, sporting clubs and corporations, guest speakers for promotional events and in-school visits with Institute scholarship holders.
The Victorian Regional Academy of Sport Network includes six regional academies for emerging athletes to commence on a high performance pathway to elite competition. Each of these academies operates on a similar model to the Victorian Institute of Sport, with athletes supported with a range of high performance services using a scholarship model.