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¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport staff participate in capoeira, a type of Brazilian martial art
¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport staff participate in capoeira, a type of Brazilian martial art
20 August 2014

From the Brazilian martial art of capoeira to traditional belly dancing classes, employees at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ are embracing the advantages of working in a multi-cultural workplace.

Staff at represent more than 25 nations, including Fiji, Greece, India, Lebanon, Papua New Guinea, Canada, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden and Zimbabwe.

¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport CEO Bryan Pryde is from Canada and moved to Brisbane in 2003 in search of sunshine and a city that was similar to his home town of Calgary.

Mr Pryde said the benefits of a multi-national team provided many opportunities for staff, the ¹û¶³´«Ã½ community and people from the surrounding areas.

“We’re proud that ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport’s diversity mirrors both Australia’s and ¹û¶³´«Ã½’s culture – knowing that there are about 120 countries, including Australia, represented among continuing and fixed staff at the University,” he said.

“Being able to draw on the international backgrounds and unique heritages of many different countries allows ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport to create new opportunities and experiences for staff, students and the ¹û¶³´«Ã½ community in the form of internationally-influenced classes and events.”

Mr Pryde said while there was significant cultural diversity among staff at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport, they all had one particular thing in common – a passion for sport.

“With many nations represented at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport, it is no surprise that when big world sporting events come around, like the Commonwealth Games, there is a certain level of friendly rivalry,” he said.

¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport recently celebrated Canada Day and the office was decorated in Canadian flags, a wall of fame was created and Canada’s famous maple syrup had a key presence.

¹û¶³´«Ã½ Master of Organisational Communication graduate and Brazilian Andreia Virmond worked as a marketing officer at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport and introduced many staff members to the Brazilian martial art of capoeira.

Ms Virmond said she enjoyed bringing part of her culture to her colleagues through sport.

“Capoeira is a big passion of mine and I am always happy to share it. By introducing it to my colleagues, it gave us an opportunity to have fun together and it gave them a chance to learn more about the Brazilian culture,” she said.

“In my personal experience, I had never felt so proud of my accent and heritage until I had worked at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport. I had many opportunities to share my culture at work and everyone seemed to have enjoyed these experiences.

“I had a really good experience as a student at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ and I love sports and the St Lucia Campus, so ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport seemed like a great fit more me.”

, a type of Brazilian martial arts combining music, dance and acrobatics, are also available to the public and visitors to ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport. For more information on classes at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport visit the .

Nationalities known to be represented at ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Sport are:

  • American
  • Australian
  • British
  • Canadian
  • Chinese
  • Colombian
  • Danish
  • Fijian
  • Filipino
  • Greek
  • Indian
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Lebanese
  • Malaysian
  • New Zealand
  • Papua New Guinean
  • Polish
  • Singaporean
  • Slovenia
  • Swedish
  • Taiwanese
  • Vietnamese
  • Welsh
  • Zimbabwean

Media contact: Amy Cox, 07 3346 9618, amyc@uqsport.com.au or Caroline Bird, ¹û¶³´«Ã½ Communications, 07 3365 1130 or c.bird1@uq.edu.au