The 2011 WAIS Champions Breakfast was held at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre last Friday as awards were handed out to athletes and staff who had achieved excellence in the past year.
The WAIS Cycling Program, Lauren Mitchell and her coaches Martine George and Nikolai Lapchine were amongst the award winners at a breakfast hosted by 720am Drive presenter Russell Woolf in front of over 150 guests.
In a year that had seen a further four WAIS World Champions, numerous athletes returning home for the New Delhi Commonwealth Games with medals and coaches and staff being recognised as leaders in their field, the nominations were again of high pedigree as WAIS honoured those achievements.
The first award of the morning was presented to WAIS kayaker Lockie Cooke, who claimed the WAIS Athlete Career and Education Award. Cooke’s achievements bely his young age. Despite being only 20 he has founded his own charity, ICEA, which is aimed at addressing the imbalance in education in remote indigenous communities. His work has had a tangible effect in the Kimberley, resulting in an increase in school attendance numbers whilst also providing them with sporting opportunities. In addition to this he has recently been named a Youth Ambassador for CHOGM whilst balancing his studies in Commerce and his recent selection in the Australian Under-23 kayaking team.
The Triumph Award went to World Champion gymnast Lauren Mitchell for achieving incredible results despite a horror run with injury. The fact that she even made it into the gym at the Commonwealth Games and World Championships is an incredible achievement. Her injury list reads as follows: December 2009 fractured metacarpal, February 2010 torn tibiofibular ligament and June 2010 torn adductor. In a sport where consistency of training is crucial, Mitchell’s efforts to overcome these injuries was extraordinary and a testament to her persistence and dedication.
The Best New Initiative Award recognises any process, method or knowledge created at WAIS that acts to improve operations / output; or enhances the reputation of WAIS. The 2011 Award went to the Strength and Conditioning department for their work with the Internship Program.
The Strength and Conditioning team of Gilman Barnitt, Greg Morgan and Geish Hori developed a solution to assist lower level scholarship athletes access the WAIS strength and conditioning facility under the supervision of trained professionals. Utilising the strength and conditioning network in Perth, they shortlisted and interviewed candidates, before offering the selected candidates 12 month internships. This has enabled potential international athletes in eight sports to benefit from qualified and experienced strength and conditioning coaches, a benefit they otherwise would not have had.
The prestigious WAIS Coach of the Year Award went to the coaching team behind superstar gymnast Lauren Mitchell, with Martine George and Nikolai Lapchine receiving the award for 2011.
George and Lapchine are the two senior coaches in the WAIS gymnastics program and in the past year, three of their athletes were named to the World Championship team and two were selected for the Commonwealth Games. At those events there were historic performances, with Lauren Mitchell winning a world title and five Commonwealth gold medals while Emily Little also won a Commonwealth gold medal. The pair managed difficult circumstances throughout the year with aplomb, with the squad suffering a horror run of injuries, while George took on greater responsibility for the program in the absence of Gymnastics Program Manager Liz Chetkovich. The program remains the pre-eminent gymnastics system in Australia with a large part of this down to the work of George and Lapchine.
The WAIS Sports Program of the Year Award was the final trophy handed out on the morning, with the WAIS Cycling Program landing the coveted prize. The award was accepted by program head coach Darryl Benson who led the program to an amazing run of success over the past 12 months. Incredible results that include a further three world champions aside, the athletes are fantastic ambassadors for WAIS and the sport of cycling, always willing to give of their time to encourage younger riders and recognising the contribution that Benson and the WAIS service providers make to their success. To cap it off the program has been recently recognised by Cycling Australia for an innovative technology project that it has commenced.
