Annual Presentation Evening 2018

Bendigo Academy of Sport Annual Presentation Evening

The Bendigo Academy of Sport Annual Presentation Gala Evening celebrated the successes of the athletes and coaches for the 2017/2018 year.

The Bendigo Academy of Sport Athlete of the Year went to Liam Richardson

Liam was awarded the Gary Tierney Memorial Scholarship Award at a Gala Ceremony on Friday 25^th May at the All Seasons presented by Maree Edwards MP.

Liam has achieved the following:

World Para Junior Championships August 2017 Switzerland – Combined T35-38 100m and 200m

100m – 1st T35 and 11th overall

200m – 1st T35 and 9th overall

Liam is currently ranked number 2 in the World Juniors for 100m and 200m

Australian Junior Athletics Championships 2018 Sydney – 100m Under 20 Para 1st

Australian Junior Athletics Championships 2018 Sydney – 200m Under 20 Para 1st

Victorian Junior Athletics Championships 2018 Melbourne – 100m Under 20 Para 1st (PB)

Victorian Junior Athletics Championships 2018 Melbourne – 200m Under 20 Para 1st

Pierre de Coubertin Award – An international award given each year by the Victorian Olympic Council, which recognises secondary school students who are active participants in sport and display the Olympic ideals of fair play and sportsmanship.

Academy Coach of the Year – Todd Broadbent Todd had been a Bendigo Academy of Sport athlete in the field of Volleyball for numerous years, participating at the highest levels of the sport. In 2009 he decided to join the ranks of an academy coach and has since worked tirelessly, especially with the male athletes to ensure that they maximise their potential.

Todd has been a state coach for many years and is the current 15 and under School Sport Victoria Coach, a role he has undertaken for numerous years. He has also coached Australian junior teams that compete in Thailand each year.

Teams coached by Todd have enjoyed success and this is a reflection of his understanding of the sport and being able to impart his wealth of knowledge to the young athletes.

Todd is a caring, nurturing coach who quickly gains the respect of all athletes under his guidance. He is an exemplary role model who leads by example. His ease and rapport with the junior athletes is commendable.

Recently Todd was awarded the inaugural Volleyball Victoria Excellence in Coaching Award which was presented at Volleyball Victoria’s AGM last month.

“Frank Roberts’s outstanding service award” – Gel Klein-Boonschate

Gel has been involved with the Bendigo Academy of sport both as an athlete and a coach. She was an athlete in the Bendigo Academy of Sport Volleyball program in 2005/06 and enjoyed the program immensely, later returned as an assistant coach.

Gel is very passionate about the sport of Volleyball and the BAS program as a whole.

Gel has been a coach with the Academy since 2014 and has been the Manager of the School Sport Victoria Under 16 Volleyball squad for the past two years.

Gel has a caring and nurturing nature towards all athletes and has developed a great rapport with athletes and families alike. She has assisted athletes to grow as people and not just in their sporting endeavours. This has allowed her to be a sounding board and a voice of reason especially to the girls in the Volleyball program.

This year Gel moved to Geelong with employment at Deakin University, this made it difficult for to commit to the program in 2018-19.

We wish Gel every success in life and sport

Among the special guests attending the evening celebrations was Scott McGrory. Scott started cycling in Albury/Wodonga and has represented Queensland, South Australia and Victoria where he now resides.

Scott competed at the 1988 Summer Olympics when only 18 years of age and has been a rider for several European Cycling Teams as a professional. In 2000 he represented Australia at the Sydney Olympics and has been a Victorian Institute of Sport coach, Scott now works in the media as a commentator and reporter at events such as the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, UCI World Championships and Tour de France. He is the host of the Australian television program “Full Cycle” which broadcasts on Network Nine and Fox Sports across Australia.

2017/2018 Bendigo Academy of Sport Award winners:

Canoeing

Athlete of the Year – James Humphry

Coaches Encouragement – Charlie Wardrop

Clay Target Shooting

Athlete of the Year – Kiara Dean

Coaches Encouragement – Alex Murphy

Golf

Athlete of the Year – Jarrett Miles

Coaches Encouragement – Jazy Roberts

Netball

Athlete of the Year – Chloe Langley & Sophie Kamenjarin