October 23, 2017

Outstanding students celebrated for achievements beyond the classroom

Community work, clubs and sporting prowess acknowledged at student engagement and sports awards.

The contributions and achievements of students over and above their academic studies have been celebrated by UOW student social hub, UOW Pulse.

The 2017 UOW Student Engagement and Sports Awards were presented on Friday night (20 October), recognising the contributions of clubs and individuals in creating a positive and dynamic university campus experience.

The Club of the Year and Student Development awards were presented to UOW BioNet for their exceptional focus on student development and community integration, in particular the effort made in catering to students from all backgrounds.

SWORDS, the UOW Debating Society, took out Club Event of the Year after successfully organising and hosting the Australian Intervarsity Debating Championship known as EASTERS for the first time outside a capital city in 2017, involving more than 400 participants.

UOW Motorsport was recognised with the Community Engagement award after attending a broad range of school and community events, including involvement with ‘Cars for Hope’ promoting mental health awareness throughout the car-enthusiast community.

Sophie–May Kerr, who has been an integral leader of the UOW Human Geography Society, was awarded Club Person of the Year for forging close connections between students, staff and the wider community – her leadership was demonstrated at a recent event; Our shared humanity: Insights into the refugee experience.

Other awards included New Club of the Year which was awarded to UOW Cosplay, Cultural Club of the Year awarded to the Sri Lankan Students Society, the UOW Physics Society took out the Campus Engagement Award and UniCrew, UOW Buddies and U-Turns had their contributions recognised with the UniLife Volunteers awards.

The annual Sports Awards acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of UOW Sports Clubs, sports teams and student athletes, including the prestigious Sports Person of the Year award, which was this year presented to local Paralympian James Turner who achieved three gold medals at the World Paralympic Athletics Championships.

Murray Doyle from UOW Football Club was awarded Sports Club Person of the Year after reinstating women’s teams in 2016 and securing Division 2 premierships in consecutive years. He rallied amateur football teams to offer sporting opportunities for UOW students.

Representative Sports Team of the Year went to UOW Unigames Men's Basketball Team who were bronze medallists at both Eastern and Australian University Games events.

Shared honours for Representative Athlete of the Year recognised Sean Mullan (UOW Sport Unigames Team) - bronze medallist at both Eastern University Games and Australian University Games events and green and gold selection in both Eastern and Australian University Games, and Ya Jing Zhang (UOW Sport Unigames Taekwondo) - gold medallist at Australian University Games, Women's Sparring Under 49kg.

The University Colour award went to Tim Windsor (Hockey) - 2016 & 2017 Eastern University Games Team Manager and Player, Sports Club of the Year was awarded to UOW Football Club after achieving District League Premiership in the Youth Division, and Women’s Division 2 premierships two years in a row. The club has also achieved notable growth in female participation with four women’s teams across four divisions.

A range of University Blue awards were also handed out to students with exceptional sporting talent including;

• Nicholas Kay (Basketball) – FIBA Asia Cup Lebanon 2017 Men’s Basketball gold medalist
• Mani Meredith (Surfing) – Australian University Games gold medallist in Body Boarding
• Ya Jing Zhang (Taekwondo) – Australian University Games Under 49kg gold medal
• Travis Fernandez (Taekwondo) – Australian University Games Under 74kg gold medal
• Luke Kairies (Football) – Wollongong Wolves Goal Keeper
• Emma Corcoran (Hockey) – U21 NSW Women Field Hockey Team Selection gold medal
• Nicola Carey (Cricket) – Selected in Sydney Thunder Women’s Big Bash League and Lend Lease Breakers Women’s National Cricket League Team 
• Stefanie Daffara (Cricket) – Selected in Tasmanian Roar women’s cricket team who compete in the Women’s National Cricket League (50-over format).