2016 WAIS Athlete of the Year shortlist

The 2016 WAIS Athlete of the Year will be announced this weekend and Madison de Rozario is on the short list.

Madison will be up against some amazing athletes for the WAIS gong – Colin Harrison / Russell Boaden, Sam Welsford, Tamsin Cook, Ella Pardy and Brianna Throssell.

Cycling’s Melissa Hoskins and Netball’s Caitlin Bassett were joint winners last year. Tamsin Cook was last year’s Junior Athlete of the Year and would love to claim the WAIS Athlete of the Year over the weekend.

It’s going to be exciting to see who will join the likes of Hoskins and Bassett as well as previous winners of the WAIS Athlete of the Year Award including Kim Mickle, Cameron Meyer, Steve Hooker, Lauren Mitchell and Eamon Sullivan.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Colin Harrison / Russell Boaden

With teammate Jonathan Harris from New South Wales, Boaden and Harrison followed up their World Cup bronze earlier in the year with a stunning gold medal at the Rio Paralympics Mixed Three Person Sonar event. They took the lead in round one, went on to a further two first and four second placings to eventually win by 18 points.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Sam Welsford

Cyclist Sammy Welsford followed up his gold as a member of the Team Pursuit at the World Championships in London with a silver in the same event at the Olympic Games.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Tamsin Cook

17 Year Tasmin Cook had a spectacular 2015 FINA World Junior Swimming Championships in Singapore before she qualified for Rio in April of this year. Tasmin took on the world’s best in the 400m freestyle and made the final before finishing sixth. Tamsin was also amazing as part of the 4 x 200m relay team that won the silver. Tamsin is also a candidate for this year’s Junior athlete of the Year Award.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Ella Pardy

Para athlete Ella Pardy was also a member of the Australian team at the Rio Games. She competed in the 100m for T38s where she finished sixth and was a member of the T35-38 4x100m relay team that brought home the bronze.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Brianna Throssell

Swimmer Brianna Throssell went on from her spectacular seven medal haul at the Summer Youth Olympics in 2014 to make the Australian team in Rio where she swam in the 200m Butterfly. She finished third in her heat and semi final and eighth in the star-studded final.

WAIS Athlete of the Year candidate: Madison de Rozario

Para athlete Madison de Rozario also had an amazing 12 months.  At the IPC World Athletics Championships in Doha last year she picked up a bronze in the 1500m before spectacularly winning the gold in the T53 800m. In Rio she was part of the 4x400m relay team that won silver. The T53 800m final looked like it would be a repeat of the Doha “come from behind” win for de Rozario, but the finish line came up too quickly. Madison finished 0.19 of a second behind China’s Hongzhuan Zhou who broke the world record.

These six (seven) candidates all seem worthy of the WAIS Athlete of the Year Award, and on Saturday night we will find out who he, she or they are.