Canberra's fitness culture is changing: new participation data reveals a city on the move

New participation data compiled by Sport and Recreation Canberra shows that more than 68 per cent of Canberra adults engaged in at least one form of organised physical activity in the 2025-26 financial year, up from 64 per cent five years earlier. The figures, drawn from annual club surveys and census-level tallies provided by the territory’s peak sport body, mark the highest recorded participation rate since consistent tracking began in 2018.

Where Canberrans are getting active

The data highlights a clear shift away from traditional club-based competition toward flexible, pay-as-you-go fitness options. Organised sport, such as weekend netball at the Lyneham Netball Centre or Saturday morning soccer at the Hawker Football Club, held steady at about 43 per cent of total participation. But the fastest growth came from what the report calls "non-traditional activity": gym memberships, park runs, group fitness classes, and casual social sport leagues.

That category now accounts for roughly 55 per cent of all reported activity among adults aged 25-44. The Belconnen Leisure Centre and the Canberra Olympic Pool in Civic both reported increases in casual visit passes of more than 12 per cent year-on-year through to June 2026.

Participation among teenagers (aged 13-17) remains high, at 72 per cent, though the report notes a steady drop in those enrolling in full-season competitive sport. Instead, many teenagers are combining school-based physical education with short-term programs like the ACT Brumbies’ holiday rugby clinics or the Gungahlin Leisure Centre’s after-school swim squads.

Why it matters now

The data arrives as the ACT government prepares to finalise its 2027-2031 Active Canberra strategy, which will allocate nearly $50 million in combined grants and facility upgrades over five years. Sport and Recreation Minister Yvette Berry has said the department is using the new participation figures to decide where to prioritise funding, between maintaining traditional club infrastructure or expanding casual-use spaces such as outdoor fitness stations, walking trails and multi-use courts.

Canberra’s fitness culture has also been shaped by the city’s rapid population growth. The 2026 Census showed Canberra’s population passed 475,000 for the first time, with most new residents concentrated in the Molonglo Valley and Gungahlin. Participation data shows that residents in those newer suburbs are significantly more likely to use casual facilities, such as the Stromlo Forest Park mountain-bike trails or the Dickson Aquatic Centre, than to join a club.

Local gym operators have noticed. F45 Training’s Braddon studio reported a 22 per cent increase in membership sign-ups in the first half of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, while the YMCA Canberra’s four centres recorded a combined 14 per cent rise in casual court bookings, badminton, basketball and futsal, over the past year.

The next big test will come when the ACT government opens public consultation on the new Active Canberra strategy in September 2026. Clubs, councils and casual users will all be competing for a slice of that $50 million pool. For now, the data suggests that the city that once built its sporting identity around weekend club competition is broadening what it means to be active, and the facilities and funding will need to keep pace.