Swimming Shines at South Australian Sport Awards

Swimming has again taken centre stage in South Australia overnight with a leading Dolphins athlete, decorated coach and the blue riband domestic event all celebrated as part of the South Australian Sport Awards.

Dolphins leader Madi Wilson shared the Athlete of the Year honours with fellow Birmingham Commonwealth Games Gold medallist Jessica Stenson, while Wilson’s coach Peter Bishop was named Coach of the Year and the 2022 Australian Swimming Trials claimed Event of the Year.

The award was further acknowledgement of a remarkable year for Wilson, with the two-time Olympian claiming two Gold and two Silver medals at June’s FINA World Championships in Budapest, before backing up with four Gold medals and a Bronze in Birmingham, as well as being a member of two separate World Record Breaking relay teams across the events.

2022 has been similarly successful for Bishop whose South Australian squad members continue to deliver exceptional results for Australia on the international stage, highlighted by 16 Commonwealth medals including 13 gold, two silver, and one bronze, and 12 World Championship medals, including five gold, five silver and one bronze.

Dubbed the ‘Battle From The Blocks’, this year’s Australian Trials took on a unique flavour, serving as a selection event for two international campaigns in the World Championships and Commonwealth Games.

The event certainly lived up to its billing as a workforce of more than 30 staff and 230 volunteers navigated ongoing COVID-19 restrictions to deliver a blockbuster program that also saw two individuals World Records broken at the SA Aquatic and Leisure Centre (SAALC).

Swimming Australia congratulates Madi and Peter on their awards and extends its thanks to its Event Partners for the 2022 Australian Trials, the South Australian Tourism Commission, SAALC and Swimming South Australia, for their contributions to an outstanding spectacle.