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Skeet shooting & cross country champions win September Gippstars, 26 September 2008
Defeating Australia's Olympic representatives prior to their departure for Beijing earned skeet shooter Keith Ferguson the September Senior Gippstar Award.
Keith's win was in the Australia Cup which was held in Darwin as part of the shooters' Olympic preparation program. Keith won the Cup and confirmed his status as one of Australia's best skeet shooters.
Keith had been considered for Olympic selection but had not competed in enough events last year. He now has his sights set on next year's World Championships and the prospect of Commonwealth and Olympic Games selection after that.
The Junior Award winner is Mia Ross who won the Australian U14 1500 metre Cross Country title in Geelong late last month. Mia also competed in the 3km race where, as a member of the winning Victorian team, she won a second gold medal. Both events were conducted on the same day.
Mia's talent has been recognised by Athletics Victoria and the Victorian Institute of Sport, with her selection into their AVIS squad, a training squad for talented track and field athletes.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (orienteering), Avril Gill (karate).
Junior: Aoife Coughlan (judo), Zulaikha de Souza (karate).
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Squash and rifle shooting champions win August Gippstar Awards, 21 August 2008
Alan Fraser's extraordinary win in the F-Class Open Target Shooting National Championship in Brisbane secured him the Senior Gippstar Award for August.
The championship was held over three days, but due to equipment problems Fraser was in last place at the end of the first days. However, in the following days with shooting over longer ranges, Fraser was able to take the lead.
Fraser's win was all the more remarkable because F-Class uses low-powered ammunition which was badly affected by the windy conditions. In overcoming his difficulties Fraser has stamped himself as a great rifle champion. His Australian title also follows recent wins in both the Victorian and South Australian F-Class Championships.
Bradley Soutar, at age 17, has established himself as one of Australia's most promising young squash players and a worthy winner of the Junior Award. He recently represented Australia in the World Junior Championships after spending a month training and preparing with some of Europe's best coaches and players.
Bradley represented Australia in the Championships, while his extended stay was organised by former World Champion, Sarah Fitz-Gerald, who is a great mentor and supporter of our best young squash talents.
Bradley is the current Victorian under 19 champion and holds a training scholarship with the Victorian Institute of Sport and was previously with the Gippsland Sports Academy.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (orienteering), Scott McEwan (boxing), Amie Milkins (aerial skiing).
Junior: Zulaikha de Souza (karate), Josh Ferguson (boxing), Jeremy Meyer (swimming, Brodie Watts (volleyball).
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Annual Gippstar Honours Awarded, 1 August 2008
At Wednesday night's Gippstar awards the region's best sporting achievers were honoured.
Jeremy Meyer (right) speaking at the presentations
Jeremy Meyer won the Junior Gippstar or the Year Award. He was nominated in July last year, after his breaststroke performances as a member of the Australian junior team in the Trans Tasman series. Jeremy had scored several wins and placings.
Jeremy has continued to achieve wonderful milestones of success throughout the year. For the second time he won the Australian 16 years 100 metres breaststroke title. Jeremy was then selected into the Australian team to swim at the World Junior Championships at Mexico, in July 2008. His best result was an eighth place in the 200 metres final.
Jeremy has also won several state titles and Swimming Victoria has recently awarded him the Alan Blue Memorial Trophy, for best country swimmer, and the Herald Sun News Pictorial Award for the highest ranked 18-and-under. Both awards are based on the International Point Score Ranking.
Will Tomlinson, photographed at Blacktown
Will Tomlinson was the annual Senior Award winner. Will was also nominated in July 2007. As an amateur, boxing in the 62kg class, Will has had a rapid rise to success. He won the Victorian, Australian and Oceania boxing titles in close succession and he has also defeated the Asian Champion.
Will undertook a great deal of his preparation in Sydney and his commitment to boxing has lead Will to the recent decision to move there. Will has also turned professional and he believes that, at his Blacktown base, he will have access to facilities and support that will best serve his future progress.
The Team of the Year Award was won by Gippsland Grammar's Coxed Rowing Team. The team finished 6th in last year's Australian Schools Championship, an event which provided inspiration for the team to do better. This year, despite some changes in their line-up, Gippsland Grammar won the title.
Most of the team's members are in year 12 which means that they face heavy academic commitments. Despite this, the team has been dedicated to their goals and undertook a demanding schedule of training, travelling and competition necessary to achieve success.
The evening commenced with presentations to the monthly winners from July 2007 through to this June. Most have achieved impressive outcomes since their original award nomination and we are likely to hear more of them in the future.
Also at the awards evening several Panel members and long-time supporters of Gippsland sport were inducted into the Gippstar Hall of Fame. They were Maureen Beha, Carolyne Boothman, David Drane, Kevin Hogan and Terry Hunter.
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Olympian heads Gippstar list, 24 July 2008
Daniel McConnell's Olympic selection secured him the July Gippstar Senior Award.
Daniel, 22, from Bruthen, was recently selected in the Australian Cycling squad's only place for the men's mountain bike event. His selection was announced after Daniel's 32nd placing in the recent World Championships.
Daniel is currently completing a high-intensity training and acclimatisation program in Melbourne with the Victorian Institute of Sport. He will depart soon to an Australian team training camp in Italy before flying on to Beijing.
The Junior Award winner was Sam Scammell from Traralgon. Sam recently won gold medals in the parallel bars and floor events at the Victorian Championships. Sam was also a finalist in three other events.
Sam now competes at level 8, progressing from level 7 last year at which he represent Australia, in Brisbane, against a New Zealand team. Sam also won the award in August last year.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Junior: Ben Quirk (athletics), Gemma Skeen (basketball). Daniel Gelcic (swimming)
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June Gippstar Awards to national level athletes, 2 July 2008
Two national standard champions have been announced as winners of the June Gippstar Awards. They are Yallourn junior basketball player Alex Sheedy and Morwell masters archer Merv Grinstead.
Alex Sheedy (in white) and Merv Grinstead
Alex, at 15 years of age has been selected in the Gems Training Squad, the national U19 girls' squad. Her selection is likely to lead to a place in a future World Championship side.
Alex trains with the Gems at the Australian Institute of Sport four times a year. she is also a part-time member of the Dandenong Rangers WNBL squad.
Merv had outstanding results at the Australian Championships when he won 3 events. His overall results gave Merv sufficient points to win Masters and veterans championships as well.
Merv has also won a number of Victorian championships this year, his most recent being the Victorian Clout event in early June.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (athletics), Rachael Pye (archery).
Junior: Ben Quirk (athletics), Jacquelin Voght (soccer).
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Outstanding young achievers tie for May Gippstar Awards, 6 June 2008
The Junior Award was a tie between two promising young athletes, Renee Cook and Jordan Wyatt. Renee, a netball player from Bunyip, and Jordan, a Drouin cricketer, were announced as joint winners.
Renee Cook and Jordan Wyatt
Renee was selected in the Victorian squad for the Australian under 17 Championships in which Victoria defeated New South Wales. Renee was a leading player in the tournament and was subsequently selected to the Australian squad. She will commence a squad training program at the Australian Institute of Sport next month.
Jordan, an accomplished batsman, was also was selected in a Victorian squad. Victoria finished second at the National Championships for under 15s, with Jordan being the top run-maker. Jordan was then selected for the Australian under 16 team which will tour the West Indies in November.
Craig Huffer was the Senior Gippstar winner. Craig, from Newry, has had a solid summer athletics season and is now Australia's top-ranked under 20 1500 metre runner and second in the 800 metres.
Craig's performances have won him medals at both the Victorian and Australian Championships, and a Victorian Country record (3min 43.9 for 1500 metres). More recently, he has been selected to the World Junior Championships in both distances. The championships will be held in Poland next month.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (orienteering), Chris Hollis (off-road bike racing).
Junior: Ben Barrett (downhill mountain biking), Matthew Moffatt (bocce).
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Shooter and Triathlete win April Gippstar Awards, 9 May 2008
Ironman competitor Rob Zwierlein
The Gippstar Junior Award winner was Christian Boyle from Maffra. Christian won three junior gold medals at the recent Australian Championships in Brisbane. Christian's wins were in the 25 metre rapid fire, 25 metre sport pistol, and 25 metre standard pistol events. He also finished second in the 10 metre air pistol event.
Rob Zwierlein won the Gippstar Senior Award after qualifying for the World Championships in Hawaii later in the year. Rob has had top performances in the recent Western Australian and Geelong Ironman events. Rob achieved the qualification standard both times.
The Ironman competition is an extended triathlon which usually comprises a swim of 3.8 kilometres, a cycle of 180 km, and finishes with a run over the marathon distance of 42 km.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Kimberley Stewart (life saving).
Junior: Sophie Bechaz (water skiing), Jerome Bechaz (water skiing), Madeline Fraser (equestrian), Chrissy James (life saving), Ben Lappin (aerobatic flying), Stephen O'Brien (basketball).
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Outstanding young athletes win March awards, 20 March 2008
Charlotte McShane and Cameron Hughes
Triathlete Charlotte McShane won the March Senior Gippstar Award after an outstanding performance in the Australian Long Distance Championships at Jervis Bay in February where she won the under 20s female title.
Charlotte competed against top Australian and overseas professionals, all much more experienced, and finished 5th female overall. She covered the 2 km swim, 83 km cycle and 20 km run in just 4 hours 17 min, despite hot conditions.
Subsequent to her award nomination Charlotte has also won the Victorian U20 Olympic Distance Championship.
The Gippstar Junior Award winner was high jumper Cameron Hughes, who won the Victorian U18 championship. Cameron's winning jump was 2.00 metres, a personal improvement of 5 cm.
Cameron convincingly won the Championship, well clear of second the place-getter who cleared 1.90 metres.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Rob Zwielein (triathlon), Craig Huffer (athletics), Tyron Proctor (motor cycle speedway).
Junior: Luke O'Dea (soccer), Jordan Watt (cricket), Sarah Crowe (swimming).
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Four winners announced for January and February, 15 February 2008
Four Gippstar winners have been announced for January and February with Gippsland's highest sports achievers coming from four very different sports.
Jeremy Saunders and Lisa Phillips
The January Award winners were Jeremy Saunders (swimming, junior award) and Greg Siinmaa (BMX racing, senior), and for February it was Lisa Phillips (lawn bowls, junior) and Murray French (tennis, senior).
Jeremy Saunders had extremely successful results at the Victorian Championships with wins in the 17-18 age group's 100 and 200 metres breaststroke, and 200 metres individual medley. Jeremy also placed in two other events, and he won an award as top swimmer in his age group.
Greg Siinmaa recently won two Victorian titles for BMX racing. Greg competes in the 45-49 age group, and won the 20 Class and Cruiser Class championships. Last year Greg also won an Australian championship and 3 gold medals at the Australian Masters Games.
Lisa Phillips at 14, is one if the youngest recent Gippstar winners. Lisa has recently been selected to represent Victoria in junior lawn bowls test series against three other states. Lisa has been selected as her squad's number one player, contesting the singles matches, and has been highly successful against older and more experienced bowlers.
Murray French captained the Australian team at the Super Seniors World Tennis Tournament. Murray, 66, won bronze in the singles and gold in the doubles. Australia also won the teams event.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Craig Huffer (athletics)
Junior: James Godding (go karting), Clinton Jee (basketball), Todd Gallagher (gymnastics) Ryan Buttner (athletics), Samantha Wilkins (swimming), Stephanie Treloar (badminton).
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Gippstars for top triathelete and shooter, 11 December 2007
Michelle Parks and Chris Joustra
Chris Joustra has won the December Gippstar Award following his outstanding result in the World Long Course Triathlon Championships in Lorient , France.
Chris came sixth in the 40-plus age category and was the first Australian to finish. His time was 4 hours 8 mins after a 3 km swim, 80 km cycle, and 20 km run. Competitors from 28 different countries attended.
Chris is from Mirboo North, and also competes in the longer iron man triathlon events, as well as running and cycling races.
The Junior Gippstar winner is clay target shooter, Michelle Parks, who recently won a Victorian senior title. 17 year old Michelle won the Victorian State High Gun title - an open age event - and was the top qualifier for the Victorian Team at next year's Australian tiles.
Michelle is from Inverloch and shoots with the Wonthaggi club.
Other contenders for the Awards were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (athletics/orienteering), Brad Matheson (motorcross), Josh Ross (motorcross), Peter Linton (football coach), Judy Wembrige (croquet), Andrew Quenault (football coach), Ben Soumilas (football coach), Scott McEwan (athletics).
Junior: Ryan Buttner (athletics), Thomas Davies (soccer),
Luke O'Dea (soccer), Edward Sotherington (soccer), Mathew Gauci (soccer), Connor Reddam (soccer), Chris Georgopolous (soccer).
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Water sports winners for November Gippstar, 23 November 2007
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Water sports provided the winners of November's Gippstar Awards. The Junior Gippstar Award winner is jet ski racer Joel Barry from Traralgon. Joel recently competed against some of the world's best juniors at the IJSBA 2007 World Finals at Lake Havasu, U.S.A.
Competing in the 13-15 age group, Joel has achieved a number 2 world ranking after top performances in the three championship events. Joel assisted the Australian team to an overall third place out of 30 countries competing.
The Senior Gippstar Award winner is sailor Peter Nikitin from Loch Sport. Peter claimed a gold medal in the Masters Games in Adelaide. Peter sailed his 4.8 metre mosquito catamaran, “Bee Alert” in the 54-64 years age group.
Peter has been sailing for 20 years with the Loch Sport Boat Club, where he is currently commodore.
Other contenders for the award were:
Senior: Kathryn Ewels (athletics/orienteering), Chris Hunt (cycling), Guy Morton (archery), Peter Bennett (archery), Vivienne Bennett (archery), Merv Grinstead (archery), Paul Rowe (body building), Daniel Milford (body building), and Ben Geard (swimming).
Junior: Sophie Vickers (tennis), James Ingram Robertson (netball), Thomas Henry (motocross), Lachlan Findlay (tae kwon do), Adam Curwood (soccer), Jarrad Sergi(lawn bowls), Tom Davies (soccer), Matt Gauci (soccer), Luke O'Dea (soccer), Madelaine Richardson (soccer), Harley Acheson (volleyball), Tom Couling (golf), and Jeremy Meyer (swimming).
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Gippstar winners for October, 18 October 2007
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Shannon McCurley won the Junior Gippstar Award for October. Shannon, a Traralgon cyclist, achieved great results at the National Junior Cycling Championships in Canberra. She won a gold medal in the criterium, and took 3 bronze medals in the U17 time trial, road race and teams pair trials.
Shannon has the distinction of being the second female cyclist this year to win a Gippstar Award, following Peta Mullens' win last month. Both ladies are also from Traralgon.
Nick Hider from Maffra was the Senior Gippstar Award winner. Nick is a Maffra footballer who plays mid-field. After an outstanding season Nick won the 2007 Trood Award Rodda Medal as the best and fairest in the West Gippsland Latrobe Football League.
Other contenders for the Awards were:
Senior: Adrian Burgiel (AFL football), Carmen Weaver (basketball), and Jamie Lee Pearce (basketball).
Junior: Harley Atcheson (volleyball), Geoffrey Drakeford (golf), Harrison Savage (golf), Olivia O'Connor (equestrian), Dan McConnell (mountain biking), Kayleen Gannon (gymnastics), Jackson Hall (AFL football), and Thomas Coulings (golf).
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Michael Green and Peta Mullens win September Awards, 13 September 2007
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Michael Green from Leongatha won the Junior Gippstar Award for September. Michael competed in the Australian National Race Walking Championships held in Adelaide where he was a silver medallist in the U/14 boys, 2 km event.
Earlier in the year Michael had placed 2 nd in the both 1500m and 2 km Victorian Walking Championships.
The winner of the Senior Gippstar Award for September 2007 was cyclist Peta Mullens from Traralgon. Peta represented Australia in the national team at the female equivalent of the tour De France (Route de France Feminie).
Peta came third overall in the young rider category and had six top finishes out of 9 stages. In Stage 1 Peta lead out for the eventual stage winner and still able to finish sixth in that stage.
Shortly before this Peta had been an Australian team member in the Oceania Road Cycling Championships in China, where she finished third.
Other contenders for the Awards were
Senior: Ben Geard (swimming), Karen Munro (cycling), Chis Hunt (cycling).
Junior: Michael Ross (football), Harrison Savage (golf), Lara Trevorrow (hockey), Tiana Kramer (hockey), Matt Dinsmore (swimming), Jeremy Saunders (swimming), Alex Sheedy (basketball), Jess Benai (taekwondo), Jackson Benai (taekwondo)
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Sam Scammell and Ian Hutchins win August Gippstars, 16 August 2007
Gymnast Sam Scammell & trainer Ian Hutchins
The winner of the Junior Gippstar Award for August 2007 was gymnast Sam Scammell from Traralgon. Sam was selected in the Australian Level 7 Open Team that competed against New Zealand in the Trans Tasman Challenge, winning gold. Sam also won bronze on floor, 4th on vault, 5th on high bar and 5th place overall in the level seven open section.
The winner of the Senior Gippstar Award was horse trainer Ian Hutchins from Sale. Hutchins took out Maffra's community Sports Club Cup with Sunset Plaza and in doing so, capped off his best season so far. In this racing year, Hutchins has recorded 16 country winners and seven city triumphs, both the most successes he has enjoyed in a single year and the most metropolitan wins. Hutchins has been training at Sale for the past 11 years since the Epsom Training Centre was closed.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Clinton Johnson (boxing).
Junior: Madalaine Richardson (soccer), Stephanie Tanter (soccer), Alexanra Gummer (soccer) Chloe Poole (soocer), Melissa Backman (gymnastics), Vanessa Bruce ( karate), Thomas Young (AFL).
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Jeremy Meyer and Will Tomlinson score July Awards, 26 July 2007
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The winner of the Junior Gippstar Award for July 2007 was swimmer Jeremy Meyer from Sale. Jeremy recently competed in the Trans Tasman championships, in which Jeremy has been competing against much older swimmers on a national scale. Jeremy took first place in Sydney on 200m breastroke, first in 100m breastroke, and second in 50m breastroke in an incredible time of 29.93sec. Jeremy is a member of the Gippsland Sports Academy.
The winner of the Senior Gippstar Award was boxer, Will Tomlinson, from Bairnsdale . Will competes in the 63kg Light Welter Weight division, and is the current Victorian Champion, Australian Champion, Oceania Champion and will be Australia's representative in the World Championships in the USA.
Other contenders for the awards were:
Senior: Sandra Timmer-Arends (athletics), Clinton Johnson (boxing).
Junior: Dale Simpson (baseball), Sophie Bechaz (water skiing), Chelsea Watson (archery), Brigid Davis (gymnastics), Emily Robinson (soccer), Shanii Hotchkins (soccer).
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Annual Winners Announced: Hamish Nelson, Jake & Chase Lurati, 19 July 2007
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The 47th annual Gippstar Awards annual presentations were made last night at a function at the Waratah Restaurant Morwell.
Following the presentation of the monthly award winners, the Junior Gippstar of the Year Award was presented to brothers Jake and Chase Lurati , students at Marist Sion College, Warragul. The brothers competed in Queensland in early 2007 and won the Combined Youth World Championship. They competed against a fleet of 77 yachts, and competed in 15 races over 5 days. Jake has only been skippering their Hobie Tiger Catamaran since 2006. Chase accepted the award on behalf of his brother who was unable to attend due to work commitments.
Winner of the Gippstar of the Year award was Wy Yung's Hamish Nelson. 18 year old Hamish is the current Australian U20 Decathlon Champion, and holds the record for the Victorian U20 Decathlon.
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Hamish will be representing Australia at the Melanesian Games in August 2007, after attending the Australian Combined events Development Camp in May. Hamish is a member of the Gippsland Sports Academy Athletics Squad, and has been a consistent achiever through his junior years, and now in is first senior year of competition. Hamish's award was accepted by his brother Zachariah, an accomplished athlete in his own right.
The Gippstar Team of the Year Award was presented to the St. Paul's Anglican Grammar School Aerobic Program, in recognition of their success at state and national level over the last 4 years. The students, parents and teachers were thrilled to receive the award as recognition for many years of achieving both state and national titles.
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The Gippstar Awards will now be managed by the Gippsland Sports Academy, following a handing-over ceremony at the Awards.
With the continued support of Southern Cross Ten, the Gippsland Sports Academy will provide administrative support for the Awards. Local government authorities have also agreed to support the awards to ensure their future.
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