Courtesy: Swimming WA
The 2022 Swimming WA Awards of Excellence took place on Saturday, with the Western Australian swimming community congregating at The Ritz-Carlton to celebrate another great year of swimming.
Swimming WA would like to acknowledge our special guest who attended the night; Marguerite Olivier and the team from Hancock Prospecting, The Beale Family and Representatives from Aqua Technics, Joe Zito and the team from New Town Toyota and Western Australian Insitute of Sport (WAIS),
The Awards of Excellence saw 19 Western Australian clubs who attended the night and what a night it was. Swimming WA would like to thank our fantastic MC, Ross Wallman from Nova 93.7 and the incredible DJ Wildflower, Kate Woolley, who both kept our audiences entertained for the night.
Let’s congratulate our award winners…
2022 Swimming WA Awards of Excellence Winners
Lyn McClements Swimmer of the Year Award
Holly Barratt – Rockingham Swimming Club & Kieren Pollard – North Coast Swim Club
The Lyn McClements Swimmer of the Year is awarded to a resident Western Australian able-bodied swimmer who returns the most outstanding performance during the defined period. Congratulations to Holly and Kieren for outstanding seasons, both representing Australia on the international stage!
Shelley Taylor-Smith Swimmer of the Year Award
Kyle Lee – North Coast Swim Club
The Shelley Taylor-Smith Swimmer of the Year is awarded to a resident Western Australian Open Water swimmer who returns the most outstanding performance during the defined period. Congratulations to Kyle Lee. Deserving winner for his selection on the Australian Team representing Australia at the Open Water World Championships, winning a silver in the Mixed 4 x 1500m and fifth place in the Men’s 25km at the World Champs.
Elizabeth Edmondson Swimmer of the Year Award
Alex Saffy – Bunbury Swimming Club
The Elizabeth Edmondson Swimmer of the Year is awarded to the resident Western Australian para-swimmer who returns the most outstanding performance during the defined period. Congratulations to Alex, his fourth award of the evening. Adding to his collection as para swimmer of the year for returning the most outstanding performance of the year at the Commonwealth Games.
Swimming WA are very proud of all our award recipients and look forward to celebrating our Western Australian swimming community for the years to come.
Swimming WA President’s Award – Recognising 50 years of Service
Tony Ball – Kwinana Swimming Club
Tony Ball is well known to the swimming community but his commitment to swimming both at an association level and club level would be almost unmatched. His contribution to swimming in WA cannot be overstated and is too long to go into detail, however this year also coincides with the 50-year anniversary of his association with Kwinana Swimming Club, where he was President for 21 years, Treasurer for 7 years and Club Handicapper and Record keeper for 35 years.
His service to the club, the Kwinana community and the Western Australia community is near unmatched. Very few organisations globally could say they’ve had the service of a volunteer for such a long time. His dedication to record keeping as the State Records Officer for Swimming WA has seen the celebration of hundreds, if not thousands, of Western Australia’s best swimmers and athletes over the past 30 years. This is on top of his many swimming WA and club committee roles.
Not only has Tony given outstanding service to swimming, his recall of every athlete, member and family and his knowledge of the history of swimming in Western Australia is encyclopaedic. Tony is generous with his time and his enthusiasm is absolutely contagious. He can only be described as a living treasure of Swimming WA and his club Kwinana. He is truly a worthy recipient of this award.
Swimming WA Patron’s Trophy
Alex Saffy – Bunbury Swimming Club
The Swimming WA Patron’s Trophy is awarded to an outstanding Western Australian pool or open water swimmer for their performance both in and out of competition, at a benchmark international competition.
Congratulations to Alex for his outstanding performance winning a bronze medal in the S10 Men’s 100m Butterfly at the World Para Championships!
Sir Frank Beaurepaire Trophy
Alex Saffy – Bunbury Swimming Club
Congratulations to Alex, a wonderful achievement for a brilliant year including an outstanding performance at the Commonwealth Games and World Championships.
SCTA (WA) Development Coach of the Year Award
Lakshman ‘Lucky’ Weerakkody – Kwinana Swimming Club
The SCTA WA Development Coach of the Year is presented to a talented, emerging coach who has demonstrated an ability to coach at a high level across a range of abilities and ages.
Congratulations to Lucky, a testament to your patient and quiet teaching style leaving a lasting impact on both the junior and senior swimmers from Kwinana Swimming Club.
Technical Official of the Year Award
Deb Doody – Riverton Aquanauts Swimming Club & Kim Blake – Geographe Bay Swimming Club
Technical Officials are crucial to running a successful swim meet. We thank all our Technical Officials for their countless hours and support to the sport. The Technical Official of the Year is awarded to the Official who has attained a level of excellence in the field of officiating. This year we had two winners for the first time in History.
Congratulations to Deb and Kim. Deb always brings energy and enthusiasm to everything she does. An exceptional TO who dedicates time to supporting the education of swimmers in WA. Kim is a dedicated TO volunteering at both Pool and OWS, although based in Perth she continues to support the regions and we applaud her for her dedication to her role and the sport in WA.
Coach of the Year Award
Ian Mills – North Coast Swim Club
Coaches are the backbone of our sport and are key to ensuring that athletes continue to develop and excel. They are our biggest ambassadors of our sport and tonight we recognise their achievements. The Coach of the Year is awarded to the coach of a resident Western Australian swimmer, who returns the most outstanding performance during the defined period.
Congratulations to Ian, recognition for his incredible coaching achievements this past year in guiding Kieren Pollard to the Commonwealth Games team, Kyle Lee making his first Open Water World Championships team and continuing to develop champion Open Water swimmers out of North Coast Swim Club.
Volunteer of the Year Award
Steve Hill – UWA West Coast Swimming Club
Volunteers are crucial to the successful running of our clubs and communities. The Volunteer of the Year is awarded to an individual who has displayed an outstanding level of volunteer commitment and contribution to the sport of swimming in WA.
Congratulations Steve for the recognition of your continuous volunteer efforts not only as a TO but also in leading UWA West Coast Swimming Club across multiple areas including at national and state meets.
Ben Beale Memorial Award
Emma Bond – UWA West Coast Swimming Club
The Ben Beale Memorial Award is in honour of Ben Beale who tragically passed away in April 2017. He was part of family-owned WA business, Aqua Technics, who have been a proud partner of Swimming WA for over 5 years. Ben was a talented athlete but what he loved most of all, was the camaraderie and club spirit that brings everyone together. We often recognise the personal achievements in the pool, but the Ben Beale Memorial Award is about celebrating a person who embodies the best club spirit, rewarding and recognising a swimming champion both in and out of water.
Emma led UWA West Coast Swimming Club as the Female club captain representing the club to the highest of standards, leading by example by representing the university on the club committee and being a role model to other female swimmers throughout the club. Congratulations Emma.
Club of the Year Award
Club of the Year (Metropolitan) – South Shore Swimming Club
Club of the Year (Regional) – Australind Swimming Club
The Club of the Year award recognises those clubs who have demonstrated strong governance practices, membership growth, program engagement, and opportunities for their members to develop within the sport. Congratulations South Shore Swimming Club & Australind Swimming Club for demonstrating outstanding achievements in all areas of club development.
Swimmers’ Swimmer of the Year Award
Iona Anderson – Breakers Swim Club & Alex Saffy – Bunbury Swimming Club
This award is a peer selected award by Swimming WA Travel Assistance Grant (TAG) funded athletes for the season in a 3,2,1 voting system. Congratulations to Iona and Alex, it is an absolute honour to be recognised by your fellow swimmers. A testament to both of your hard work and success throughout the past 12 months.
Age Swimmer of the Year Award
Iona Anderson – Breakers Swim Club
The Age Swimmer of the Year is awarded to the resident Western Australian Swimmer aged between 13-16 for girls and 14-17 for boys who returns the most outstanding performance during the defined period. Back-to-back awards for Iona! Recognition for Iona’s performance at Hancock Prospecting Long Course Championships and at the 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships. Congratulations Iona!