ABSTRACT
As a professional sports coach working at the Australian Institute of Sport for 13 years, the results of the athletes the author coached reflected the 'value' he was to the organisation. The first country the author worked with was Papua New Guinea (PNG) through its Paralympic Committee in 2008 at the National Sports Institute in Goroka. In 2009, the Australian Prime Minister announced at the 40th Pacific Islands Forum the release of additional funds to establish and support sport partnerships between the Australian Government, Australian National Sports Organisations and Pacific Island counterparts. The Pacific Sports Partnerships (PSP) programme was established. The islands of Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu were the targeted countries in the first iteration of the Smash Down Barriers programme. Mentoring as part of the PSP programme has been integral to the successful outcomes. The data indicate a significant increase in the levels of physical activity by people with disability.
