5 November 2007 By Graham Croker
Scholarship holders from Sydney University Sport are well represented among the finalists for the 2007 NSW Institute of Sport awards.
Heading the list is gymnast Prashanth Sellathurai, who is a contender for the Most Memorable Moment in 2007, Male Athlete of the Year and Outstanding Achievement awards.
The 21-year-old physiotherapy and sports medicine student won a silver medal on the pommel horse at the World Championships in Paris.
Sellathurai earned a World Championship berth after winning gold on the pommel horse at the Australian Championships, along with silver on the parallel bars, bronze on the rings and a team silver.
His 2007 achievements backed up a successful 2006 when he won a silver medal on the pommel horse at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, along with gold on the pommel horse and the rings at the Australian Championships.
Rower Bronwen Watson has been nominated for two awards: Female Athlete of the Year and Team Athlete of the Year.
Watson came out of retirement to win gold in the women’s lightweight quad at the 2007 World Rowing Championships held in Munich.
Watson teamed with Tara Kelly of Queensland, Alice McNamara of Victoria and Miranda Bennett of NSW to edge out Germany for the silver medal and Italy for the bronze. The Australians led from start to finish in recording a time of 6:35.85.
“It worked out exactly as we had planned,” said Watson, who officially retired after winning a bronze medal in the same event at the 2003 World Championships in Milan and gold at the 2003 World Cup in Lucerne.
As the lightweight quad is not an Olympic event, Watson will now be looking to gain a seat in the lightweight double for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Others nominated for awards are rower Mitch Estens (Outstanding Achievement – Male); diver Alex Croak (Outstanding Achievement – Female and Academic Excellence), canoeist Lachlan Milne (Career Development); and sailor Katrina Lawrence, canoeist Jacob Michael, hurdler Justin Merlino and swimmer Jonathon Newton (all Academic Excellence finalists).
And the Rowing Club and Water Polo (Women’s) clubs are finalists in the Program of the Year award.
The awards will be announced at a dinner at the AJC’s Randwick Pavilion on November 29, where broadcaster Alan Jones, will be the MC.