NAIDOC Week | Will Roberts

Athletics NSW would like to recognise this week as NAIDOC Week, which started on Sunday 3rd July and ends on Sunday 10th July. NAIDOC Stands for National Aboriginal and Islanders Day Observance Committee, who are the organising body of the week, and this year's theme is "Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!".

We caught up with Will Roberts, one of Australia's premier sprinters (reigning NSW 100m Champion, and 2021 National 100m bronze medallist), to touch on what this week means to him as a proud Indigenous Australian.

"My name is Will Roberts I’m a proud Gamilaroi man who was raised on the Eora nation of Sydney  - unfortunately I do not have much connection with any elders from my Nation but I am definitely looking to change that." 

"This year's NAIDOC theme of Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up! means to keep the momentum going of past Indigenous people. I think Indigenous people as a whole have a very rich and proud history of standing up against very tough situations, we persevered even when the odds were heavily against us. Ultimately this years theme for me stands for never backing down from who I am or what I believe in and to be proud of who you are despite what others think." 

"I’ve had a few different experiences as an Indigenous man in the Athletics Community, some positive and some not. The celebration of NAIDOC week, especially with this years theme, is a great start. I think that the athletics community accepts Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander athletes, and camps are held to promote Indigenous Australian's participation in the sport. But I think there is still room for improvement in terms of building stronger relationships in the community, and supporting their continued participation [at the grassroots] and elite level."