Multiple Winners at the 2016 Victorian Sport Awards
What’s better than winning one award at Victoria’s sporting night of nights? Winning two!
With the 2017 Victorian Sport Awards only months away, we recognise and celebrate organisations that took out multiple awards at last year’s Victorian Sport Awards.
Let’s start with Cricket. A game Aussies have have embraced since Jack Blackham became the first Victorian to represent Australia in the first ever Test match against England in the 1870’s. A game that unites cultures and people of all abilities.
Cricket was celebrated twice last year, the first being the Victorian Community Coach of the Year Award going to Hussain Hanif. Hussain is coach of the Victorian Vikings - representative side for the Victorian Intellectually Disabled cricket team. Born in New Zealand with Fijian heritage, Hussain speaks Urdu, loves the Pakistan cricket team and dedicates his time to coaching cricket to players with intellectual disabilities. A role model and mentor, Hussain teaches his players batting and bowling techniques, as well as being their confidant and shoulder to lean on when through turbulent times.
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| Hussain Hanif | Will Robertshaw |
19-year-old Will Robertshaw took home the Victorian Young Volunteer of the Year Award for his dedication to both cricket and the AFL. Will is a senior player of the Ormond Amateur Football and Cricket Club, and was recognised for his commitment to his young players and inspirational coaching philosophy.
Swimming was also celebrated in numbers with 16-year-old Emily Beecroft winning the Victorian Young Athlete of the Year Award. Emily represented Australia at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games and hails from Traralgon Swimming Club. Butterfly and freestyle are her specialties in the pool and Emily thrives under pressure swimming her PB in Rio last year.
Mack Horton OAM needs very little introduction after he capped off be a stellar 2016 in the pool winning gold in the 400m Freestyle at the 2016 Rio Olympics. The victory saw Mack become the first male Victorian swimmer to win an individual Olympic gold. Based in Melbourne, Mack Horton started swimming when he was 12 and when he’s not training for his next meet, Mack runs the Optus Junior Dolphin program encouraging young kids to participate in swimming.
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| Mack Horton OAM | Emily Beecroft |
Football Federation Victoria (soccer) also walked away with their hands full with George Halkias claiming the State Government Victorian Community Sport and Recreation Award for his work with disadvantaged youths and the football community. Read George's story here.
The Victorian Community Official of the Year was handed to Hary Milas for combining his officiating skills with a passion for helping those in need. A regular at community charity events including Homeless World Cup, Victoria Police Soccer Team and the Victorian Pride football match, Hary is admired and respected in the football community for his passion for helping those in need and the countless hours he spends putting smiles on the faces of youths through teaching football.
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| George Halkias | Hary Milas |
Nominations are now open for the 2017 Victorian Sport Awards. If you have someone in mind that you would like to nominate, complete the nomination form here.
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