The talent search events, held in all major cities and territories, are designed to not only identify stars of the future but funnel them into a sport they would be suited to after a series of tests.

Three-time Olympic kayaker Alyce Wood was found through a talent identification program after a background in surf lifesaving.

“I was always looking around for Olympic sports and I was one of those kids that tried lots of things in school and nothing ever really stuck,” Wood said. “We did some box jumps, we did some 40-metre sprints and they took our arm span. They put me in kayaking and the rest is history.

“I think the biggest thing is it’s never too late. A lot of our kayak team didn’t start paddling until they were in their late teens.

“I know there’s lots of different doors that can be open for the kids leading into Brisbane and I think that’s pretty exciting.”

Of all athletes who represented Australia at this year’s Paralympics, 36 per cent were identified through a talent ID or pathway program.

Australians aged between 13 and 23 are being targeted for Olympic sports, while anyone over 13 is encouraged to consider taking up a sport that features at the Paralympics.

“A lot of the time with Paralympic sport the gaps are around access to equipment, access to coaching and access to venues that are appropriate,” said Australia’s Paralympic chef de mission Kate McLoughlin. “You don’t want to go out and try and find all this talent and then have no one to coach them, no equipment, and so on. That’s something which we’re working with the federal government as well.”

After significant investment in Australian sport in the 1980s and 1990s, Australia won more medals at Sydney 2000 than any Olympics and topped the medal tally at the Paralympics later that year.

Executive general manager of AIS performance Matti Clements added: “We have an ambitious goal to have the best Olympic and Paralympic team ever in Brisbane and to achieve this we need to significantly boost our current talent pool, in particular our para athletes. Off the back of Australia’s success in Paris, this is the best time to leverage that passion and encourage eligible Australians to put their names forward.”