National Sport Information Centre

The National Sport Information Centre (NSIC) is an Australian sports information and resource service associated with the Australian Sports Commission. It was created to improve access to information about sport, physical activity, coaching, training, administration and related disciplines, supporting the Australian Sports Commission's broader objectives for the development of Australian sport. Although it is often described as a library, the centre's role extends beyond conventional lending and reference services: it provides access to a broad body of online and print material and functions as a specialist information resource for the sports sector. The centre originated in 1982 as the Australian Institute of Sport Information Centre, established in connection with the Australian Institute of Sport. In 1987, the Australian Institute of Sport and the Australian Sports Commission were brought together institutionally. Following that change, and after funding was allocated in the 1988–89 Australian federal budget to expand the service, the information centre adopted the name National Sport Information Centre in 1989. The new name reflected a wider national remit rather than a resource serving only the Australian Institute of Sport. NSIC is housed in the Corporate Services Building of the Australian Sports Commission at the Australian Institute of Sport campus in Canberra. Its intended users include sports and recreation organisations, teachers, coaches, researchers, athletes and members of the general public. This audience gives the centre a practical role across both high-performance and community sport. Coaches and athletes can use its resources for training and performance-related research, while educators, administrators and researchers can draw on material concerning sport science, governance, recreation and the organisation of sporting activity. The centre's collection combines digital and physical resources and is described in reference material as one of the most comprehensive collections of its type internationally. Its significance lies less in consumer branding than in specialist public-service infrastructure: NSIC acts as a knowledge gateway for people seeking reliable sports information in Australia. The available reference material does not identify a separate commercial parent, private owner, public listing or independent corporate structure. Instead, the centre is presented as an Australian Sports Commission-funded institutional service. Detailed current information about its staffing, collection size, service metrics and operating arrangements is not established in the supplied sources.

The National Sport Information Centre was established in 1982 as the Australian Institute of Sport Information Centre. Its creation accompanied the development of the Australian Institute of Sport and reflected the need for a dedicated information resource supporting athletes, coaches, administrators and other people working in sport. From its beginning, the service was intended to provide more than a conventional library by bringing together specialist sports knowledge and making it available to users connected with sport and recreation. A major institutional change occurred in 1987, when the Australian Institute of Sport was merged with the Australian Sports Commission. The information centre subsequently became part of a broader national sports administration framework. In the 1988–89 federal budget, funding was allocated to expand the centre. In 1989, it was renamed the National Sport Information Centre, a change that signalled its intended role as a resource serving Australian sport nationally rather than an information unit confined to the Australian Institute of Sport. The centre is located in the Corporate Services Building of the Australian Sports Commission at the Australian Institute of Sport campus in Canberra. Under the Australian Sports Commission, it supports sport and recreation organisations as well as individual users. Its audience includes members of the public, teachers, coaches, researchers and athletes. This broad remit allows the centre to serve both specialist high-performance needs and wider educational, administrative and recreational interests. NSIC's resources include both online and print material. The collection covers sport and related disciplines and is described by the available reference material as one of the most comprehensive information collections of its kind in the world. The centre therefore operates as a knowledge and access service: its value is in organising and enabling access to information that can support sporting practice, research, education and administration. The supplied sources do not provide a detailed account of later restructures, collection statistics, senior personnel, major public campaigns or specific service technologies. They do establish the centre's continuing institutional identity as an Australian Sports Commission-funded national sports information resource based at the Australian Institute of Sport campus. Its history is consequently defined by the expansion of Australia's organised sports system, the integration of the Australian Institute of Sport with the Australian Sports Commission, and the development of a national information service for sport.

• 1989

  Renamed National Sport Information Centre

  [1]National Sport Information Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The centre adopted its National Sport Information Centre name, reflecting a broader national role after the institutional changes involving the Australian Institute of Sport and Australian Sports Commission.

• 1988

  Expansion funding allocated

  [1]National Sport Information Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Funding was allocated in the 1988–89 federal budget to support expansion of the sports information centre.

• 1987

  Institutional merger of the Australian Institute of Sport and Australian Sports Commission

  [1]National Sport Information Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The Australian Institute of Sport and the Australian Sports Commission were brought together, creating the institutional context for the centre's later national identity.

• 1982

  Information centre established

  [1]National Sport Information Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The Australian Institute of Sport Information Centre was established to provide specialist sports information and resource services.

A national specialist knowledge and information resource for Australian sport, positioned between a sports library, research support service and public information centre.

• Specialist information collection · 1982

  Sports information collection

  NSIC maintains access to a broad collection of sports and related-discipline resources in online and print formats. The collection is intended to support information needs across performance sport, coaching, education, research, administration and recreation. Reference material characterises it as one of the most comprehensive collections of its type, giving the centre a national specialist-resource function rather than the narrower role of a general public library.

• Professional information service · 1982

  Reference and information services

  The centre provides access and information support for sports and recreation organisations, teachers, coaches, researchers, athletes and members of the public. Its service model is designed to help users find and use sports-related knowledge, combining library-style access with a specialist institutional focus on Australian sport and its associated disciplines.

1. 1National Sport Information Centreen.wikipedia.org
2. 2National Sport Information Centre - Australian Sports Commissionausport.gov.au