11.05.2007

Corrigan named ACT's best

Middle distance athlete Lisa Corrigan has been named ACT Athletics' Most Outstanding Athlete for 2006/07.

The 2007 Telstra Australian Athletics Season marked a stirring campaign for the popular 22 year-old, with victory at the Telstra A-Series Canberra in the 800m, Telstra A-Series Sydney in the 1500m, an Australian record for the mile at the Telstra A-Series Melbourne and her first Australian championship in Brisbane in the 1500m.

She also recorded ACT Resident records in the mile, 1500m and 800m.

Corrigan's times have placed her third in the Australian all-time rankings for the 1500m and third in the 800m while an A-qualifier for the World Championships saw her selection in the Australian team.

In other awards, thrower Amanda Fraser was named ACT's Outstanding Athlete with a Disability Award, taking into consideration performances against world and national records for any athlete with any classification of disability.

Fraser won gold and silver at the IPC World Championships in discus and shot put as claimed second and third place in the respective events at the Australian championships.

Other nominees were seated throws champion Hamish McDonald, sprinter Christine Wolf and throwers Gregory Hibberd, Louise Ellery and Wade McMahon.

The Senator Margaret Reid Trophy, awarded to the outstanding junior athlete, was chosen from a field of wonderful young athletes including Alex Lorraway, Angie Blackburn, Lauren Boden, Emily Brichacek and Zoe Buckman.

Hurdler Boden was the winner with Lorroway and Blackburn collecting ‘in stadium’ age awards in the U20 and U18 categories respectively, while Brichacek collected the U18 ‘out of stadium’ award.

Awards were also presented to coaches in three categories; Coach of the Year, Junior Coach of the Year, and Coach of Athletes with a Disability in recognition of the significant contribution that they make to athletics in the ACT.

Matt Beckenham, whose stable includes Brendan Cole, Lauren Boden, Brendan Galic and Brittney McGlone, was named coach of the year. John Tomlinson, coach of U16 in stadium and out of stadium winner Brett Robinson, was named Junior Coach of the Year, and Alison O’Riordan, coach of Amanda Fraser, Greg Hibberd, Wade McMahon and Hamish McDonald, was named Coach of Athletes with a Disability winner for the second successive year.

The 2005-06 Interclub Point Score Champion, an award that is presented to the ACTA athlete who accumulates the greatest number of points at interclub track and field competitions, was awarded to U16 Woden Harriers’ athlete Patrycja Nowak.

The awards night welcomed two further athletes, Lisa Corrigan and Marnie Ponton, to the elite Canberra Medal list.

Patrick Johnson (two) and Martin Dent also recorded standards but have already received a medal for that event in past years.

Courtesy ACT Athletics