KATHMANDU, MARCH 11: Australian Ambassador to Nepal, Felicity Volk marked International Women’s Week in her cricketing gear by participating in a mix-gender blind cricket event at Mulpani Cricket Ground in Kathmandu on Thursday.
Cricket Association of the Blind organized the event with the support of the Australian Embassy’s Direct Aid Program.
According to a media release issued by the embassy, the Embassy is also funding the development of a training manual for sporting events for people living with a disability.
Addressing the event, Ambassador Volk expressed her sincere condolences on the passing of one of the greatest bowlers in cricket history, Australian cricketer Shane Warne. “Sport brings us together as a community in friendly competition and it helps us to overcome barriers to inclusion,” she said.
Quoting the ‘Australian of the Year 2022’ and wheelchair tennis champion, Dylan Alcott, Ambassador Volk said, “We have to have greater representation of people with a disability absolutely everywhere. In our boardrooms, in our parliaments, in our mainstream schools, on our sporting fields, in our universities, absolutely everywhere.”
“The tagline, ‘Break the Bias’ is at the heart of this year’s International Women’s Day and it applies equally to social inclusion for people living with a disability. I can think of no better way to break the bias for people with sight impairment than a cricket game,” Ambassador Volk said.
“On this day, as we mark International Women’s Day and celebrate the wonderful work of the Cricket Association of Blind Nepal, I commit that the Australian Embassy will continue its work to promote inclusion ‘for all in all’