Dylan Alcott's Inaugural Ability Fest Raises Close To $200,000 For Charity

9 April 2018 | 3:59 pm | Staff Writer

'Easily the sickest thing.'

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The first ever Ability Fest attracted 5,000 punters to Melbourne's Coburg Velodrome over the weekend, raising nearly $200,000 in support of the Dylan Alcott Foundation.

Appearing on triple j's Breakfast program this morning, Paralympian and organiser Dylan Alcott dubbed the festival, "one of the best days of my life".

"Nobody cared about their race, gender, sexual orientation, and most importantly, their disability," Alcott said.

"I had so many people with disabilities come up and say it was the first time they’d ever been to a festival with their family and friends, in tears, saying thank you."

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The festival line-up included the likes of Client Liaison, Flight Facilities, Tkay Maidza and more.

Designed specifically for differently abled people, the event featured multiple viewing platforms for wheelchair users, as well as Auslan interpreters on each stage.

"When Tkay was rapping fast and the Auslan interpreter was doing it as well as dancing at the same time? Easily the sickest thing. We had over 30 people who were deaf there that had never been able to enjoy the music festival," Alcott said.

Alcott and event organisers Untitled have confirmed that they intend to make Ability Fest an annual event, beginning with a return in 2019.