Australia
ParaMatildas set to ride the wave of football fever as Para Asian Cup announced for Australia
Key Points
- Australia has been announced as the host of the 2023 Para Asian Cup for football.
- For the first time, the tournament will include a women’s competition.
- The ParaMatildas are Australia’s national women’s team for footballers with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injury or symptoms of stroke.
Nine years ago Nicole Christodoulou never imagined she would be able to represent her country playing football – now she is in training for a historic tournament in which her team will go in ranked number one.
On Monday it was announced that Australia would host the 2023 Para Asian Cup for football.
For the first time, the tournament will include a women’s competition and Christodoulou, who is a forward in the ParaMatildas, is pinching herself.
The 30-year-old suffered two strokes about nine years ago that paralysed the left side of her body.
“I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t sit up straight, I couldn’t feed myself, look after myself in general. I needed my mother to help me brush my teeth, feed me and do everything for me,” she said.
“I spent 10 weeks in the hospital learning to retrain my brain to do things I once did naturally again.”
At that point, her dream was to simply play her favourite sport just one more time but she has gone far beyond just getting out on the field.
She was chosen as part of the ParaMatildas just last year, when the team was formed.
The ParaMatildas and the Pararoos are Australia’s national teams for footballers with cerebral palsy, acquired brain injury or symptoms of a stroke.
The Para Asian Cup being held at Latrobe University in Melbourne will be Christodoulou’s second large-scale tournament, having played in the Para World Cup in Spain in May.
Being selected for the team has given Christodoulou an opportunity she thought was lost.
“My dream then, nine years ago, was to just play one more game and now to be at this highest level I could possibly play is surreal,” she said.
The two-week Para Asian Cup will begin on October 31 and while the exact number of nations participating is yet to be confirmed, the women’s side will go in as the number one ranked team.
The tournament occurs just a few months after the 2023 Women’s World Cup is played across Australia and New Zealand.
The federal Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, Bill Shorten, welcomed the announcement.
“It’s also an exciting time for those that amongst the 4.4 million Australians who self report as having a disability who want and desire to play sport,” he said.
