High achieving First Nations athletes are set to be better supported after the Australian Olympic Committee launched the Australian Olympic Indigenous Athlete Scholarship.

Launched at the Australian Olympic Committee's (AOC) annual general meeting, the scholarship is the inaugural program of the Australian Olympic Community Foundation — the newly established philanthropic arm of the AOC.

It recognises Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander athletes can face material and systemic disadvantage — including financial, educational and social barriers — which limit equitable participation and progression in Olympic sport and in life beyond sport.

The program is designed to address barriers by providing financial assistance with living costs to relieve disadvantage, education costs and access to culturally safe, Indigenous-led mentoring and career support, with the broader aim to strengthen leadership, representation, personal development and long-term life outcomes.

Indigenous Olympians Cathy Freeman and Patrick Johnson are among the Foundaiton's founding members.

"This scholarship seeks to strengthen community leadership, to grow First Nations representation across Olympic sport in Australia, and to open doors to better life outcomes - in sport, in education, and well beyond," Mr Johnson, the AOC's Indigenous Advisory chair, said.

"In doing so, it is a small but deliberate step on the long journey of reconciliation through sport.

"A scholarship of this kind is never just about one individual - it is about the nieces and nephews, the cousins, and the kids down the road, the community and the nation who will see what is possible."

The sholarship will provide eligible young First Nations athletes with financial support to assist with secondary, tertiary, TAFE or vocational study, alongside Indigenous-led career development and mentoring delivered through specialist partners.

Recipients do not need to be Olympians, however they must "make a commitment to lead, mentor and be visible in the community," the AOC said.

The annual general meeting also saw the AOC's member sports endorsed the AOC Strategy 2026 to 2036 — A Decade of Opportunity. The strategy was developed in consultation with member sports and government stakeholders.

AOC chief executive officer, Mark Arbib, said the strategy places Australian Olympians and member sports at the centre of the AOC's endeavours ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games.

"Our core focus will continue to be the design and delivery of world-class, Games-time performance environments for the Australian Olympic Team," Mr Arbib said.

"The environment in which the AOC and our Member Sports operate continues to change rapidly.

"We face real challenges - but we also stand before a decade of remarkable opportunity."

According to the Australian Olympic Committee, 66 Indigenous athletes have represented Australia at the summer and winter Olympic Games.