Mental health the focus for OVO AWL Round 3
Published Thu 06 Feb 2020
Round three of the OVO Australian Waterpolo League (AWL) will shine a light on mental health, highlighting the role sport can play in breaking down stigmas associated with mental health.
Water Polo Australia Acting Chief Executive Officer Richard McInnes said that sporting clubs and teams form a vital part of local communities and can provide a really safe, supportive environment to help people have the tough conversations around mental health.
“We as a national sporting league recognise the role we can play in creating greater awareness about openness about mental health and address some of the stigma associated with talking about issues that many of us face,” McInnes said.
“Sport is a great vehicle to help break the stigma around mental health and bring members of our community together,” he said.
This weekend’s OVO Game of the Week will see the Drummoyne Devils host UTS Balmain Tigers at Drummoyne Pool.
Drummoyne have teamed up with mental health organisation LIVIN in support of creating awareness for their message that ‘It Ain’t Weak to Speak.’
LIVIN Fundraising and Events Coordinator Kelly Malloy said that it’s great to be able to work with Drummoyne again on such an important initiative.
“We appreciate the gesture of support from community initiatives such as the one hosted by the Drummoyne Water Polo Club as it creates awareness for mental health and opens up conversations,” Malloy said.
“If conversations start at a grassroots level within the club itself, that conversation will naturally spill out into the surrounding community.
“Sport has come a long way with making mental health an accepted discussion, which has largely stemmed from high profile athletes openly speaking about their struggles with mental health - the more people that talk about mental health, the closer we are to breaking the stigma that surrounds it.
“A lot of conversations happen in the change rooms of sporting clubs and maybe not so much in a formal setting, but it all comes down to sporting clubs and organisations creating that culture that reassures people that they will not be judged about speaking up, whether it’s to their teammates, coaches or family.”
Right across Australia there will be plenty of games happening as part of round three of the OVO Australian Waterpolo League - click here for full details
The OVO game of the week will see Drummoyne Devils take on UTS Balmain Tigers - watch all the action live on Sunday 9 Feb. Women’s match 4:30PM (AEDT) and Men’s match 6:00PM (AEDT).
If you are experiencing a hard time, need someone to talk to, or are in a crisis, we would recommend giving our friends at https://www.eheadspace.org.au/ a message, calling the Kids Help Line on 1800 551 800 or Lifeline on 13 11 14.
To find out more about LIVIN - check out their website.
