A big congratulations to all of the worthy Sports Awards winners for 2021! This year, similar to last year, our athletes have struggled with COVID-19 restrictions and often had to persevere with their chosen sport away from teammates, the field and coaches. But yet again, the resilience of our athletes has shined through!

We had so many amazing entries – choosing a winner wasn’t easy for our judges and we want to thank all of those who entered. You’re all super stars! This year’s sports awards winners are:

The Randwick City Junior Female Sports Award - Marnie Laurence
Marnie Laurence is just 9-years-old and already the success she achieves in all of her chosen sports is impressive! Excelling in athletics, surf lifesaving, cross country and AFL, Marnie has exceptional physical ability and talent as well as a dedicated work ethic. Yet it is her humble nature and commitment to her team that really sets Marnie apart. She is always on hand to support her peers and has a true willingness to help others. Marnie has had a stellar season, performing at the highest level receiving many accolades, including:

• LANSW State Athletics Championships 2021: Gold 100m, Gold 200m, Gold mixed relay
• Surf Life Saving State Championships NSW 2021: Gold Flags, Gold Sprints, Gold Sprint Relay
• LANSW State Combined Carnival 2020: Gold
• IPSHA Cross Country 2021: Silver
• CAS Cross Country 2021: 17th

The Randwick City Junior Male Sports Award - Jett Stokes

Jett Stokes started mountain biking when he was just six years old and since then has achieved remarkable feats for his young age, in both cycling and long-distance running. Jett is the youngest cyclist in the world to complete ‘Half Everesting’, climbing and descending a hill multiple times in 24 hours to achieve the elevation of 4454m (half the height of Mount Everest). Jett cycled Bradleys Head Road near Taronga Zoo in May 2021 to complete Half Everesting at age 10. A member of the Randwick Botany Cycling Club, he carries himself with such dignity for his young age. He’s always the first to congratulate his competitors, even when he hasn’t won, and represents his club with pride. In 2017 Jett rode 169km over four days doing the Otago Rail Trail when he was just 6 years old. His list of highest achievements include:

• Silver medallist, NSW Junior Road Race Championships, 2020 (U11)
• Regional level, in Sydney Metropolitan Athletics Junior Championships
• Regional level, in Sydney Metropolitan Cross Country Junior Championships

The Bradley Matthews Memorial Award for Sporting Excellence - Tali Baltineshter

A mighty congratulations to Tali Baltineshter for winning the 2021 Bradley Matthews Memorial Award for Sporting Excellence for her success in Javelin Throw and Basketball. Tali is a role model and a mentor to younger javelin athletes and basketball players. She is always happy to assist her coaches when training younger kids and encourages kids to take up both sports. Tali is currently ranked #1 in Australia for U16 Women's Javelin and number #3 in the World for her age group. Tali achieved gold for the U16 Women’s Javelin at the National Australian Athletics Championships.

The Randwick City Hall of Sporting Champions - Sean Garlick

We welcome rugby league player Sean Garlick to the Sporting Hall of Champions for his contribution to sport in the local area. A great player a good leader, Sean played for both the South Sydney Rabbitohs and Eastern Suburbs Roosters, where he captained both teams at various times.  Sean is a fine sportsman, who played all his sport locally. An inspirational leader, Sean is a great communicator and a very successful businessman and is now the owner of Garlos Pies. A dedicated family man, he retired from playing when he was at a senior competitive level.

The Randwick City Hall of Sporting Champions - Les Davison, awarded posthumously

We'd like to acknowledge the contribution Les Davison from the La Perouse Aboriginal Community made to sport in our area. Uncle Les was an outstanding boxer and was selected and taken to the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, however he was turned away and unable to fight because he was Aboriginal. Sadly, Uncle Les passed away on 15 August 2021; our community and especially our aboriginal community suffered a great loss with his passing. This year, Randwick City Council would like to acknowledge Uncle Les for the outstanding athlete that he was by inducting him posthumously into the Randwick City Council Sporting Hall of Fame.

We're also pleased to announce that next year in 2022, we will be introducing two new categories into our annual Sports Awards. The first, will be to recognise sporting coaches in our area and the second will be to acknowledge the achievement of sporting people with disabilities in our City. We look forward to expanding our awards to these worthy categories.

We’d like to give a special shout out to Terowie Golding who was Highly Commended in the Randwick City Junior Male Sports Award, and Elijah Raif who was Highly Commended in the Bradley Matthews Memorial Award for Sporting Excellence.

Congratulations once again to all of our winners.