Three of Western Australia’s young swimming superstars are in the running for one of the state’s top sporting awards. The WAIS Athlete of the Year and Junior Athlete of the Year honors will be presented tomorrow, October 17th, at the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) Annual Dinner.
From a select group of exceptional candidates up for the awards, ranging from team sports, individual athletes, as well as Rio Olympic and Paralympic hopefuls, Brianna Throssell, Tamsin Cook and Damian Fyfe are vying for the premier recognition.
Throssell is one of 10 candidates up for the title of WAIS Athlete of the Year, as the young talent made a name for herself at her very first senior World Championships. Throssell wound up finishing 4th in the women’s 200m butterfly event in Kazan, clocking a time of 2:06.78, just shy of her personal best of 2:06.60. The latter time, which Throssel registered at South Australia State Championships earlier this year, still ranks as the 7th-fastest mark in the world this year.
For their part, Cook and Fyfe are among the candidates looking to be named WAIS Junior Athlete of the Year. Each had a stellar 2015 championship season, topped off by Cook’s triple medal haul at the World Junior Championships in Singapore, which included first-place finishes in the women’s 800m free relay, 400m freestyle and 200m butterfly races.
Fyfe also set himself apart at the same meet, collecting a silver as part of the Australian men’s 800m freestyle relay, while also recording a personal best en route to earning 4th in the men’s 200m freestyle event.
