Little Athletics Australia

What Little Athletics Australia does

Little Athletics Australia Limited is the national governing body for modified athletics for children in Australia, founded in 1972 and headquartered in Albert Park. Operating as a non-profit company limited by guarantee, it delivers weekly athletics programs for children aged 3-15 through a federated model comprising six state and two territory member associations and hundreds of local centres. Its core products include the flagship Little Athletics program for ages 5-15, the Coles Little Athletics Tiny Tots program for ages 3-4, the LAPS (Little Athletics Program for Schools) delivered in Australian primary schools, an Athlete Development pathway program, the Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships, and a Multi-Class Competition system with the True Inclusion Method (TIM) framework for athletes with disability. Supporting products include an eLearning platform (hosted on Revolutionise), ITLAS coaching education, the Inclusion Hub, and a webinar-based Inclusion Education Series.

The technology stack is modest and operationally focused: an online registration and centre finder, an eLearning portal for volunteer coaching and officiating education, a rule-based Multi-Class Classification system with baseline scoring, and digital curriculum resources for schools. No AI/ML systems, patents, or proprietary data assets are disclosed. Revenue is generated through three primary streams: athlete registration fees collected at the centre level, corporate sponsorship led by Coles as National Naming Rights Partner and Grove Juice as Major Partner, and centre affiliation fees flowing from local centres to state associations and ultimately to the national body. Go-to-market is community-led: families register children at local centres, schools contract through the LAPS program, and sponsors activate through national and centre-level events.

In April 2026 the organisation completed a historic unification with Australian Athletics, consolidating governance over the full Australian athletics pathway from grassroots to elite. The organisation is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors and operates with a lean national staff of 1-10 employees, with operations delivered through the affiliated state/territory associations and approximately 50,000 weekly adult volunteers.

Name

Little Athletics Australia

Legal name

Little Athletics Australia Limited

Website

https://littleathletics.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Little Athletics Australia is the national non-profit governing body for modified athletics for children aged 3-15, delivering weekly centre-based programs, schools outreach, and inclusion programs through a federated state and territory network serving roughly 100,000 athletes and 50,000 volunteers weekly.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Community Athletics Programs

NAICS

Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (71394), Sports and Recreation Instruction (611620)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth & Scholastic Sports Organizations (K–12, AAU, Club Leagues) (MPAKACAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Disability & Adaptive Sports Organizations (Paralympic, Special Olympics) (MPAKACAH), Recreational & Intramural Sports Programs (MPAKACAG)

Keywords

• Youth athletics programs
• Community sports programs
• Athletics coaching education
• Inclusive sports programs
• School athletics curriculum

Headquarters

HQ city

Albert Park

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Athlete Registration Fees: Weekly centre-based programs where children aged 5-15 (and Tiny Tots aged 3-4) pay registration fees to participate. Each local centre collects fees and is affiliated with state associations
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Major sponsorship revenue from naming rights partner (Coles) and major partner (Grove Juice), plus apparel, travel, and insurance partners
3. Centre Affiliation Fees: Local centres pay affiliation fees to state member associations which are affiliated with Little Athletics Australia

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Little Athletics Australia is the national governing body that delivers weekly athletics programs for children aged 3-15 through a federated network of affiliated state/territory associations and local centres across Australia. It sells participation in core athletics (running, jumping, throwing), a Tiny Tots introductory program, school-based coaching via LAPS, national championships, and an inclusion framework supporting athletes with disability.

Product overview

Little Athletics Australia operates a multi-product athletics participation platform centered on its core Little Athletics program for children aged 5-15, complemented by the Coles Little Athletics Tiny Tots program for ages 3-4. The organization delivers educational programs including LAPS (Little Athletics Program for Schools) and ITLAS (coaching education), along with the Inclusion Hub featuring the True Inclusion Method framework. National competitions include the Coles Australian Little Athletics Championships, while the Multi-Class Competition system enables athletes with disability to compete through classification and baseline scoring. The organization also provides an eLearning platform and Inclusion Education Series webinars for volunteer training. The portfolio is unified under the Coles National Naming Rights Partnership with support from Grove Juice as Major Partner.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Little Athletics Core Program

Quantifiable outcome

• Around 1 in 6 people in Australia have disability - Little Athletics provides inclusive pathways for this population
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Australian AthleticsflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2026Historic unification of Australian Athletics and Little Athletics Australia completed in April 2026. Sherrie Boulter joined the Australian Athletics Board bringing extensive Little Athletics knowledge. The two organisations commenced unification from mid-April 2026.
• ColesflagshipGTM or Marketing PartnerColes is the National Naming Rights Partner of Little Athletics Australia. The partnership includes naming rights for Australian Championships, Community Rounds, Tiny Tots program, and various awards including Centre of the Year. Coles provides significant marketing support and brand visibility across the Little Athletics network.
• Grove JuicecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerGrove Juice is a Major Partner for ALAC 2026 and sponsors the Volunteer of the Year Award. They provide product support and funding for volunteer recognition programs.
• ISC SportminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNational Apparel Partner providing clothing and uniform solutions for Little Athletics Australia.
• Sportslink TravelminorGTM or Marketing PartnerNational Travel Partner providing travel and logistics services for Little Athletics events and championships.
• Gow Gates (Insurance)coreOthersNational Insurance Partner providing sport program insurance coverage for Little Athletics Australia. Website links to Gow Gates sport programs insurance page.
• Australian Sports Commission (ASC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerASC Play Well Affiliate. The ASC developed the TREE framework (Teaching/coaching style, Rules, Environment, Equipment) which Little Athletics Australia has adapted for inclusion of athletes with disability.
• Capital AthleticscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for ACT region managing local Little Athletics centres and territory competitions.
• Little Athletics NSWcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for NSW region managing local Little Athletics centres and state competitions.
• Little Athletics QueenslandcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for QLD region managing local Little Athletics centres and state competitions.
• Little Athletics SAcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for SA region managing local Little Athletics centres and state competitions.
• Little Athletics TasmaniacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for Tasmania region managing local Little Athletics centres and state competitions.
• Little Athletics VictoriacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMember Association for VIC region managing local Little Athletics centres and state competitions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• AFL Auskick: Afl's national introductory programme for children aged 5–12, run through local clubs. Directly comparable to Little Athletics in its centre-based, parent-volunteer-driven, sport-skill-development model for Australian children.
• Cricket Australia - Milo in2Cricket / Junior Blasters: Cricket Australia's entry-level junior programmes delivered through clubs and schools nationwide. Comparable grassroots youth sport model with a sponsor-led, club-affiliated structure similar to Little Athletics' Coles partnership.
• Hockey Australia - Hook in2 Hockey: Hockey Australia's introductory programme for 5–10 year olds run through clubs and associations. Comparable youth-onboarding sport programme with an inclusion pathway similar to Little Athletics' Multi-Class offering.
• Basketball Australia - Aussie Hoops: Basketball Australia's national introductory programme for 5–10 year olds delivered through affiliated associations. Shares the federated structure (national body → state associations → local clubs) used by Little Athletics.
• Australian Sports Commission: Australian Government agency that funds and governs national sport policy, including the TREE framework co-developed with Little Athletics. Comparable as the umbrella body that enables national sporting organisation operations and inclusion initiatives.
• Netball Australia - NetSetGO: Netball Australia's introductory programme for 5–10 year olds run through affiliated associations and centres. Shares the federated youth-sport delivery model and family/community engagement focus of Little Athletics.
• Swimming Australia - Learn to Swim: National learn-to-swim infrastructure delivered via accredited swim schools nationwide. Comparable as a foundational sport-skill programme for Australian children, with parallel emphasis on accredited instructor networks.
• Football Australia - MiniRoos: Football Australia's small-sided game programme for 4–11 year olds, delivered through grassroots clubs and Member Federations. Comparable in its structured introduction to sport for primary-school-aged Australian children via a national-to-local federated model.

Direct peers

• Athletics Australia: National governing body for senior athletics in Australia and now the unified counterpart of Little Athletics Australia following April 2026 merger. Directly comparable in mission, sport, and federated delivery model across elite competition pathways.

Regional players

• UK Athletics - Junior Athletics: UK Athletics governs junior and grassroots track-and-field programmes in the UK. Highly comparable as a national governing body for youth athletics, sharing the modified-events-for-children philosophy, though operating in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/LittleAthsAus
• Facebookfacebook.com/littleathleticsaust
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coles-little-athletics-australia
• Instagraminstagram.com/littleathleticsaust
• Xx.com/LittleAthsAust

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Little Athletics Australia