In 2024, the 28th Indigenous Nationals will be held from June 23-27 at the University of Wollongong in Wollongong, NSW. This event will feature mixed competitions in four sports: touch football, basketball, netball, and volleyball.

The National Indigenous Tertiary Education Student Games (NITESG) began in 1996 as a collaborative class project by 13 students pursuing a Diploma of Aboriginal Studies (Community Recreation) at the Wollotuka School for Aboriginal Studies, University of Newcastle.

Now known as the Indigenous Nationals, this week-long multi-sport competition brings together Indigenous student-athletes from universities across Australia. The event celebrates the rich sporting culture of Indigenous Australia while honouring the heritage and history of the participants. Each year, universities vie for the championship title in a variety of sports.

Monash University will be sending a dedicated team of student-athletes to this year's Indigenous Nationals at the University of Wollongong. After hosting the games last year, the Monash team has been diligently training twice a week in four sports since the start of the year.

Alli Charles, a team organiser and athlete, is particularly excited about the volleyball competition. 'We’ve been preparing extensively for volleyball, and we believe we have a strong chance to win this year,' Charles stated.

The Monash team also looks forward to building a sense of community and connecting with other Indigenous student-athletes from around Australia. 'We cherish the opportunity to meet other Indigenous students pursuing higher education. Of course, we’re also aiming to bring home some trophies, especially after winning the netball trophy last year,' Charles added.

'With many first-year students on our team, we aim to encourage them to step out of their comfort zones, make meaningful connections with their mob and culture, and of course, strive to win the volleyball trophy and any other trophies we can,' Charles concluded.

We at Team Monash wish our team the best of luck at the University of Wollongong!

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