Ariarne Titmus is poised to become the youngest female swimmer since Hayley Lewis to take out the coveted Olympic Program Swimmer of the Year at the 30th Anniversary of the Australian Swimmer of the Awards in Sydney on Sunday night.
Athletes, coaches, clubs and volunteers will converge on the Museum of Contemporary Art overlooking iconic Sydney Harbour.
They will celebrate what has been a successful return to the international stage for the Dolphins, who won five gold, nine silver and five bronze medals for a total of 19 medals and two world records in snaring a rare 4x200m freestyle relay double at this year’s World Championships.
Other major Awards will include the Paralympic Program Swimmer and the four categories for the Coaches of the year, ‘Club of the Year’ and ‘Local Legend of the Year’ as well as the Patron and prestigious Swimmers Swimmer of the Year Awards.
Schoolies in: Ariarne Titmus and Hayley Lewis. Photo Courtesy: Gold Coast Bulletin.
Lewis was just 16 when she won World Championship gold in the 200m freestyle, silver in the 400m freestyle, silver in the 400m freestyle and bronze in the 200m butterfly to take out the 1991 Australian Swimmer of the Year.
And some three decades later Australia’s success in 2019 has been largely due to the rise of 19-year-old Titmus and her coach Dean Boxall, who are both set to scoop the pool.
Tasmanian-born Queensland teenager Titmus, was 18 throughout her record-breaking year and has been nominated for two major awards – the Hancock Prospecting Olympic Program Swimmer of the Year and the 2018 Australian Short Course Swimmer of the Year.
Boxall has been nominated for Hancock Prospecting Olympic Program Coach of the Year and the Youth Coach of the Year – an award he has won the past two years.
It follows Titmus’ record breaking achievements at both the FINA Long Course and FINA Short Course World Championships, which earlier tonight saw the girl born and raised in Launceston named the 2019 Tasmanian Athlete of the Year.
Before her September 8th birthday, a then 18-year-old Titmus did the unthinkable, swimming over the top of the world’s greatest ever women’s freestyler, US golden girl, multiple Olympic and World Champion Katie Ledecky.
Titmus broke Ledecky’s extraordinary seven-year unbeaten run over 400, 800 and 1500m freestyle to claim Australia’s first gold of the Championships on a memorable opening night for the teen.
Words of wisdom: Coach Dean Boxall with world champion Ariarne Titmus. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr (Swimming Australia)
The Dean Boxall-coached Titmus clocked a superb pb of 3:58.76 (27.52; 57.12; 1:57.72; 2:28.03; 2:58.45; 3.29.25) – a new Commonwealth, Oceania and Australian record – the second fastest swimmer over 400m in history.
The Commonwealth champion from St Peters Western became the World Champion when she came home all over Ledecky after trailing her going into the final turn to become the new world champion – our first in the women’s 400m freestyle since Tracey Wickham in Berlin in 1978.
Titmus, who clocked the fastest final split of the night in 29.51 –said after the race: “I never thought I would be in a situation where I would be mowing Katie (Ledecky) down – she is such a champion – so I tried to make the most of it. I am happy that I got the job done, (but) I can still see room for improvement.”
“My coach Dean Boxall said to me there were three outcomes; you could swim great, you could swim good, you could swim bad but you will still wake up tomorrow.”
Magical moment: World champion Ariarne Titmus after dethroning Katie Ledecky. Photo Courtesy: Delly Carr (Swimming Australia).
It was the highlight of a stellar 2018-2019 – becoming Australia’s only individual gold medal at this year’s FINA World Championships in Gwangju where she won two gold (400m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle relay), silver in the 200m freestyle and bronze in the 800m freestyle.
Her season started in spectacular fashion at the FINA Short Course World’s in Hangzhou last December when she set her first world record in the 400m freestyle 3:53.92) and added her second gold in the 200m freestyle (1:51 38 – a new Championship record) and bronze medals in the 4×50 and 4x200m freestyle relay.
Here is the full list of nominations:
2018 Short Course Program Swimmer of the Year
Minna Atherton (Brisbane Grammar)
Ariarne Titmus (St Peters Western)
Thomas Fraser-Holmes (Griffith University)
AIS Discovery of the Year
Ruby Storm (Traralgon)
Matthew Temple (Nunawading)
Ricky Betar (Auburn)
Col Pearse (Melbourne H20)
Youth Coach of the Year
Scott Talbot (Nunawading)
Dean Boxall (St Peters Western)
Mick Palfrey (WAIS)
Nick Veliades (MLC)
Club of the Year
Ballarat Swimming Club, VIC
Barossa Swimming Club, SA
Guildford and Kalamunda Districts Swimming Club, WA
Local Legend of the Year
Josh Barila, Mildura Swimming Club (VIC)
Ron Barnes, Breakers Swim Club (WA)
Michelle Parker, Alice Springs Swimming Club (NT)
Matt Roberts, Nambucca Aquatic Swim Club (NSW)
Roger Smith Technical Official of the Year
Paul Carter, (NT)
Faye Lewis, (NSW)
Jackie Madden, (VIC)
Denise McLaughlin, (TAS)
Open Water Program Coach of the Year
John ‘JR’ Rodgers (Noosa)
Chris Nesbit (TSS Aquatic)
Michael Sage (Kawana Waters)
Paralympic Program Coach of the Year
Jon Bell (Monte)
Harley Connolly (Belgravia Swim Team)
Andrew Howard (Central Cairns)
Simon Cusack (Knox Pymble)
Hancock Prospecting Olympic Program Coach of the Year
Dean Boxall (St Peters Western)
Michael Bohl (Griffith University)
Simon Cusack (Knox Pymble)
Peter Bishop (SASI)
Open Water Program Swimmer of the Year
Kareena Lee (Noosa)
Nick Sloman (Noosa)
Kai Edwards (TSS Aquatics)
Chelsea Gubecka (Yeronga Park)
Paralympic Program Swimmer of the Year
Tiffany Thomas Kane (Monte)
Ellie Cole (Knox Pymble)
Grant Patterson (Central Cairns)
Lakeisha Patterson (Belgravia Swim Team)
Jesse Aungles (Marion)
Hancock Prospecting Olympic Program Swimmer of the Year
Ariarne Titmus (St Peters Western)
Cate Campbell (Knox Pymble)
Emma McKeon (Griffith University)
Kyle Chalmers (Marion)
The Patron awards and the Swimmers’ Swimmer accolade will be announced on night, while recently retired swimmers will be recognised through a presentation supported by Arena.
AUSTRALIAN SWIMMERS OF THE YEAR
1990 Glen Housman, QLD
1991 Hayley Lewis, QLD
1992 Kieren Perkins, QLD
1993 Kieren Perkins, QLD
1994 Kieren Perkins, QLD
1995 Susan O’Neill, QLD
1996 Susan O’Neill, QLD
1997 Michael Klim, VIC
1998 Michael Klim, VIC
1999 Ian Thorpe, NSW
2000 Ian Thorpe, NSW
2001 Ian Thorpe, NSW
2002 Ian Thorpe, NSW
2003 Ian Thorpe & Grant Hackett, NSW/QLD
2004 Jodie Henry, QLD
2005 Grant Hackett, QLD
2006 Leisel Jones, QLD
2007 Libby Lenton, QLD
2008 Stephanie Rice, QLD
2009, Jessicah Schipper, QLD
2010, Alicia Coutts, QLD
2011 James Magnussen, NSW
2012 Alicia Coutts, QLD
2013 Cate Campbell, QLD
2014 Cate Campbell, QLD
2015 Bronte Campbell & Emily Seebohm, QLD
2016 Kyle Chalmers, SA
2017 Emily Seebohm, QLD
2018 Cate Campbell, QLD