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Thank you to everyone who made it to our Club’s Presentation Night / Christmas Party. A special thank you to Christina and Samantha Young who presented the Steve Young Memorial Clubperson of the Year Award and to our Life Member Ian Lamb for helping us celebrate the past year.
It takes many wonderful volunteers to help keep our Club running smoothly and I would like to thank you all. Whether you have been involved with timekeeping duties; catering; attending meetings on behalf of our Club; preparation and the running of club nights; organising uniforms; ensuring our meet entries are in on time; helping out during our meets; keeping the best swim club’s website up to date with fantastic photos, meet reports, newsletters and all the relevant information; seeking donations and sponsorship ….. I thank you all. I would also like to thank the members of the Executive Committee, who have constantly worked behind the scenes.
On behalf of the Club, I would like to thank our fantastic coaches, Bill, Neill and Beth for their dedication and hard work training our talented swimmers and helping them achieve their goals. I would also like to thank Amanda, who was always there to help out in a coaching role when needed.
This year the Club has continued to see many incredible achievements. We have seen swimmers compete at their very first meet; swimmers compete in events for the very first time; swimmers compete and excel at various meets; numerous PBs achieved; swimmers being invited to attend elite training camps; Country, State and/or National Championships qualifying times achieved; and swimmers qualifying to represent the ACT at the Pacific School Games with six competing and achieving fantastic results. All our swimmers should be very proud of themselves. Congratulations!
In July our Club faced the challenge of being split in two, due to the temporary closure of the Tuggeranong Pool. A lot of work went on behind the scenes, meeting with representatives from other pool facilities and arranging pool space at Kings, Erindale and Civic. We are very grateful to these people, as they enabled our training to continue with minimal amount of disruption as possible. However, I have to say how great it is to have our Club back together training at the Tuggeranong Pool.
Congratulations to Jarrod Lee and Amanda Joyner who were elected as the Club’s 2015-2016 Club Captains. Both Jarrod and Amanda have been involved in Committee Meetings, providing some fantastic ideas and have been instrumental in the organisation of our Presentation Night/ Christmas Party. I would like to thank them both and encourage them to keep up the great work.
At the Presentation Night / Christmas Party the following awards were distributed. Congratulations to all the recipients.
President’s Award: This year’s recipient is always determined to do his very best, trains hard, has achieved many fantastic PBs and has recently competed at the Pacific School Games receiving a Bronze Medal. Congratulations to Benjamin Stokes.
Outstanding Achievement Award: This year’s recipient trains hard, participates at most meets and has achieved numerous PBs. He has broken many Woden Club records throughout the year including 8yo Boys 50m Freestyle, 50m Backstroke and 50m Breaststroke, as well as 9yo Boys 50m and 100m Freestyle, 50m Backstroke, 50m Breaststroke, 50m and 100m Butterfly, and the 200m Individual Medley. Congratulations to Yaroslav Zharkov.
Club Night Participating Award: This year’s recipient has always been an enthusiastic participant at Club Nights. He always gives his all and is a pleasure on pool deck. Congratulations to Nicholas Odgers.
Most Improved Blue Squad Award: This year’s recipient has improved immensely since joining the Woden family earlier this year. She is currently our Club’s youngest member. She always tries her best at training, club nights and at competition meets and is now competing in 50m events. She always has a smile and is a pleasure to coach. Congratulations to Emily Couper.
Most Improved Bronze Squad Award: This year’s recipient has seen continual improvement; dropping times prior to the World Championships, and at World Championships, achieved three PBs; received a Silver Medal in the 4 x 100m Relay and a Bronze Medal in the 4 x 50m Relay. She has also qualified for the Trisome Games that will take place in Florence, Italy in July 2016. Congratulations to Katie Senior.
Most Improved Silver Squad Award: This year’s recipient has made enormous progress during the last 12 months and has recently qualified for next year’s National Age Championships in two breaststroke events. His improved performances are a result of stronger training efforts and a more conscientious attendance at training. He is still developing as a swimmer and has a bright future in the sport. Congratulations to Jake Mackie.
Most Improved Gold Squad Award: This year’s recipient is a very dedicated swimmer who has worked extremely hard at all training sessions. He has undertaken extra sessions which entailed performing preventative injury exercises and has studied the attributes of some of the world’s leading swimmers in order to improve his own performances. His improvement during the last 12 months has been substantial and he is now an established National Age level swimmer. Congratulations to Ethan Lowey.
Club Captains Certificate of Achievement Award : This year’s recipient is always polite and courteous, has a great attitude and shows great sportsmanship. Congratulations to Nicholas Odgers.
Steve Young Memorial Clubperson of the Year Award: This award was introduced last year in order to celebrate the life and memory of one of Woden’s greatest ever members, Steve Young. The award is open to all current Woden members including swimmers, parents and life members. The recipient is decided upon by the Executive Committee (thus being ineligible themselves), as they have a good idea of all the members and their respective involvement within the club. Qualities such as respect, attitude, dedication, sportsmanship, passion and competitiveness are all taken into account. In conjunction with this, the conduct displayed by the recipient, both within and outside of the club, and it’s promotion to the public, is of utmost importance, as this is the legacy that Steve and all of his work has instilled at the heart of our club and its members. It is the highest honour that any Woden member can receive placing them in an elite group within the club’s history. Congratulations to Jasmine Thornton.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the many companies who have supported us over the past 12 months. Thank you to Woden Dermatology, Bakers Delight Lanyon, Bonza Bangers Hawker Butchery, Bunnings Warehouse Tuggeranong, Cafe2U, Freshka Fruita Woden, Flip Out, Grill’d Woden, Limelight Cinemas, One Sportswear & Uniforms, Rebel Sport, San Churro’s Woden, Stratco and Woolworths Conder. Your generosity is very much appreciated.
Finally, Merry Christmas to you all and please stay safe over the holiday period. I look forward to seeing you all in the New Year and celebrate what I’m sure will be another fantastic year, full of excitement and achievements.
Cindy Mackie
President