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Barbara Worley

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Barbara Worley
Portrait of Barbara Worley
Personal information
Nationality Australia
Born13 September 1934
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Died1 May 2014
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

Barbara Elizabeth Worley, AM (13 September 1934 – 1 May 2014) was an Australian sports administrator who played a leading role in the development of Paralympic sport in Australia particularly in terms of sport administration.

Personal

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She was born on 13 September 1934 in Melbourne, Victoria. In 1959, she married Don Worley and they moved to the United Kingdom.[1] She returned to live in Adelaide, South Australia in 1963.[1] In 1967, she was in a motor vehicle accident whilst travelling to Melbourne.[2] The motor vehicle rolled over and her lap style seat belt crushed her.[2] The accident left her with a broken spine.[2] At the time of the accident, she was married to Don and they had three young boys.[2] After the accident, she spent a year in Royal Adelaide Hospital.[3] She became involved in sport as part of her rehabilitation.[2] She died in Adelaide on 1 May 2014.[1][4]

Sports career

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Worley's sporting achievements included winning gold and silver medals in table tennis at the 1974 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games in Dunedin, New Zealand.[5] In 1976, she was the Australian Women's Wheelchair Table Tennis Champion.[5]

In the 1980s she became involved in the administration of sport for people with a disability. In 1982, she was the first president of the Wheelchair Sports Association of South Australia.[6] In 1988, she was President of the Australian Confederation of Sports for the Disabled.[7] The Confederation was responsible for raising funds and organising the Australian team to the 1988 Seoul Paralyampics.[2] The fundraising program raised just over $1 million.[7] Worley and her husband Don were able to convince Hon Graham Richardson, Minister for Sport to cover the costs of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation(ABC) in filming the Games.[2] Her husband Don began to film sport for the disabled in the early 1970s[3] and the ABC's involvement came a few years later.[2] In 1975, he filmed a documentary on the FESPIC Games. This is regarded as the start of the ABC's involvement in the sport for the disabled.[2] Donald Worley's films were donated to the National Film and Sound Archive.[3]

In 1989, she was appointed to the Australian Sports Commission's Board, a position that she held until 1992.[8] Worley has also been a member of other board and committees including: Sport Arts & Recreation Council (SPARC), Disability Information and Resource Centre (DIRC), Sport, Art & Recreation Council for People with Disabilities and Australian Bicentennial Authority Consultative Committee on Recreation and Sport for the Disabled.[5]

Worley has been employed special-needs consultant to Adelaide-based travel company Travelaffare. This role organised wheelchair-accessible holidays to overseas destinations.[9]

Recognition

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Worley has received the following honours in recognition of her work for disability sport and sports administration:

References

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  1. ^ a b c "VALE BARBARA WORLEY AM" (PDF). THe Order of Australia website. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 February 2015. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Paralympic pioneers". AC Stateline Transcript. 19 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 August 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  3. ^ a b c Breslin, Annie (5 September 2016). "Cigars, para-sports and a love story". National Sound and Film Archive of Australia. Archived from the original on 22 April 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  4. ^ "Barbara Elizabeth Worley – Death notice". Adelaide Advertiser. 3 May 2014. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
  5. ^ a b c d "President's Award 1981". PARAQUAD SA website. 2001. Archived from the original on 2 March 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2013.
  6. ^ a b "WORLEY, Barabara: Australian Sports Medal". It's An Honour Website. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  7. ^ a b "1988 Paralympics Appeal Report" (PDF). Australian Paralympic Committee website. 1988. Retrieved 16 September 2013.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ "Australian Sports Commission Annual Report 1991-1992" (PDF). Australian sport publications archive. 1992. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  9. ^ "Access restricted". Sydney Morning Herald. 13 January 2008. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
  10. ^ "WORLEY, Barbara Elizabeth, AM". It's An Honour Website. Retrieved 17 September 2013.
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