Coles March Athlete of the Month award winners

Congratulations to all the March Coles Community Award winners, each winner will receive a Coles gift card & certificate AND go into the running for the title of Coles Little Athlete of the Year and Coles Volunteer of the Year (only in LASA) in their respective state

Little Athletics ACT

Rowyn always has the biggest smile on her face when running around the track. She loves cheering on her friends and her two older sisters. The 400m and long jump were her favourite events.

In her first year with Tornadoes, Isla has shown a keen willingness to learn. In the 2nd week of club championships she achieved a PB in her six events.

Olivia is a true example of continuous skill improvement and adds PB's regularly. She is also an inspiration to other athletes, helping them achieve their personal bests.

Blake is passionate about his own training, but also about giving others opportunity to develop and reach their potential. Blake volunteers his time to coach others & travelled to Dubbo for State Youth Qualifiers to support & watch the development in action.

He is always encouraging to all athletes and takes time out on Friday evenings to go to a different club to help with throws. Daniel loves athletics!

Although Ty has had a great season with all the competitions that he's entered in this year and also collected many medals from regional championships and gala days, when it comes to Friday night club training, he always encourages and helps other boys who may struggle with a throw or jump.

Its Kam's first year of Little Athletics and she has entered every carnival in the area. She is half the size of all the other girls and still learning but she never gives up and stays positive even if she comes last. She doesn't complain, she just tries harder. A true champion!

Zoe Counter from the Woolgoolga Club as little athlete of the month. She is always so very happy, encouraging and kind to all the other kids. She tries her hardest and is always willing to give anything a go, even if it's an event she knows she is not good at, crossing the line or jumping with a big smile, even in last place. I always have parents come up to me at events and say what a lovely girl she is as they watched her chat, joke and encourage their children in events they are in together.

Shot put and discus are her favourite events and she is always trying to find ways to improve and puts everything she has in to them.

Amber Bonell and Johannah Maizey are two truly amazing girls. They are both eager to help set up for our Wednesday afternoon sessions. Always going the extra mile to assist where possible. Both girls give encouragement and mentoring to the younger athletes each week as well as putting in a 100% themselves. Amber and Johannah both display a great deal of commitment and leadership which we are all very proud of. We are extremely lucky to have both of these young ladies in our club.

Connor is one of our seniors and always gives it his all. He loved taking all the kids every week for their warm-up . Connor unfortunately broke his knee doing hurdles at the club but still continued to go down on a Friday afternoon and look after the finish line computer. He missed out on competing at States but went and cheered all our athletes on.

Charli is always willing to lend a hand and support her friends and family in any situation or event. She is a hardworking and determined young lady that although has struggled with her own self-confidence, has always been forthcoming in helping others to achieve their goals. To her credit, Charli over comes the self-confidence demon and trains hard and has dedicated her body and mind to push herself in all levels of sports. It is so pleasing to see Charli always smiling and happy when she is being active in sport. She is an inspiration to other young adults, especially young ladies, showing that you don’t need to be the biggest, or strongest to succeed, you just need to work hard and have fun and patience and persistence will pay off.

Taylah has been at Jimboomba LA's since U8. She helps run our 25 Tiny Tots program on a Wednesday afternoon and encourages and supports our other Athlete's on our Friday night comp by running along side of them and coaching them. She was behind the Coles Banana night they held. Taylah too had finished of her season with a Gold in Discus.

Balin overcame many internal obstacles to train every single day in the lead up to State Champs - usually in the dark, after he had finished school and his after school job at AMC Mechanical. He challenged himself to gain speed and strength and did in a spirit of good humour and fun with our team coach Kerri Wills. Usually very anxious about crowds and noise, he overcame his fears and ran a 14 second PB in the race to come 3rd and made some new friends while he was at it.

Club Captain Dylan Devine is forever helping at the Club, from cooking our BBQ to getting the kids warmed up. He always encourages our young athletes to do their best. A Great Role Model for them to aspire to!

Kharla has been a member of the club & LAQ for 10 years. She has always participated in club, regional and state events helping out where she could and encouraging the younger athletes. She has participated in State Championships over the years but never medalled and still she goes on the track giving it her all. She has always shown true sportsmanship congratulating her peers. She never gives up. Kharla has made many great friends from different clubs over the years and she has Little Athletics to thank for that. This year however as an U17 athlete and her last ever State Championship, Kharla was determined to bring home a state medal. She won GOLD in all 4 of her events and a Qld record, 10 years but she did it. Kharla leaves LAQ on a high. Kharla supported her other club mates cheering them on when she wasn't competing but she has done that her whole life. Younger athletes have always looked up to her for guidance and support. She is deserving of this award as she has dedicated 10 years of her life to the club and LAQ even when there was no one to run with in her age group.

Patrick is an U7 athlete who has been involved with the Gawler Club for 3 years. Patrick was nominated for this month's award by 3 individuals. In the month of March, Patrick achieved 2 PB's, and has attained a fantastic 8 club records this season in the 50m, 70m, 100m, 200m, 500m & Long Jump.

Patrick loves running and his favorite events are the 100m & 200m, and he looks up to and gains inspiration from his favorite runner Usain Bolt.

Patrick is an athlete who is committed to excelling his athletics performance, often seen at the club training when there is no scheduled training session, and is always very focused, working really hard to be his best, striving to improve his results.

Patrick was recently also the winner of the Gawler Junior Athlete of the Year Award! Patrick can't wait for the next Little Athletics Season, and has set the goal of running the 100m in under 15 seconds. Patrick has been described as an 'incredible' athlete, with a very bright future ahead of himself.

Akon is an U12 athlete who has a unique spirit, is gentle in nature, and has a bucket load of determination, grit and heart. She consistently displays a positive attitude towards her friends and competitors throughout training, home meets and at State Events.

Akon’s voice can be heard across the oval, yelling encouragement for others and her younger siblings. Akon is an example of always trying to be her best, respecting defeats and using them to improve her own personal performance and her peer group. She modestly accepts her achievements in a gracious and humble way, wanting no fanfare or extra attention, most recently demonstrated when she broke a 44 year old club record. When the record was publicly announced, she attempted to remain another face in the crowd, unsuccessfully, by everyone at the club wanting to celebrate her amazing achievement.

Akon generates enthusiasm for the sport amongst her peers through her high commitment to athletics and supporting others to develop through verbal encouragement and leading by example. She is recognised as a role model by other athletes, living her values as an athlete (go hard and leave exhausted), and isn’t afraid to show her vulnerabilities or her emotions, which adds to her authenticity. Akon is a leader in sport and personally amongst her friendship group. Even at such a young age, she is able to read emotions in others and provide support, as well as her ‘old soul’, which has her often seen as a safe haven for less confident peers.

With Akon’s rapid growth and maturity as an athlete, she has learnt over the past few years how powerful her body is and the Enfield Club looks forward to seeing her develop as an athlete and discover her full capabilities.

Akon consistently sets goals, and strives to achieve these by attending clinics and through her specialised coaching. Resilience is a huge characteristic of Akon, and when she feels defeated, physically or mentally, she is able to take a minute, analyse the situation, work out a plan and execute it.

Ben and his family have been part of the Northern Districts Club for 7 years, with Ben being a committee member for 4 years.

Shortly after joining Northern Districts, Ben noticed the club’s very outdated website and spoke with the president about creating a new modern website. After creating a wonderful website, Ben moved onto the club’s social media platforms, including the Facebook & Instagram pages.

Ben manages these pages and does a fantastic job doing so, with the club consistently receiving excellent feedback from the athletics associations, the club’s parents and athletes, and other club’s about the posts, photos & videos he creates. Ben takes brilliant photos of athletes in action competing, receiving awards and having fun, and parents love and look forward to seeing their children each week on the posts he creates.

During the peak of South Australia’s COVID-19 restrictions, Ben also worked tirelessly to put together a live stream video for the club’s End of Year Presentations. Many hours were spent in preparation of the live stream, and families really enjoyed sitting back and enjoying Ben’s professional work from their homes.

Apart from Ben’s responsibilities in the club’s digital space, he also takes on the role of line marking with another committee member Josh. This can be a very time-consuming job, especially when wet weather washes your hard work away only days after it has been completed. Ben also took the time to stencil in the shape of the NDLAC logo, which he then painted on the ground for photos during Sally Pearson's visit to the club, and again at the club’s closing ceremony. During the Winter Season, Ben also spent a number of hours working on and setting up the club’s Cross Country Course for the Little Athletes to run on, and was up at a time many of us are still asleep, to ensure the track is ready for the officials to check before the proceedings are underway.

Ben is described as an asset to the club, and Northern Districts cannot explain in words their appreciation for all of the work he does.

Congratulations FRED ANSELL

Fred is a member of the Queenborough Little Athletics Centre and is our March Coles Little Athlete of the Month. Fred was nominated by Selena Hagan who had this to say;

'Fred Ansell is quiet and unassuming, but participates with enthusiasm. He comes every morning and helps set up along with his sister. Being his U11 year, he has asked for advice on Triple Jump, and crouch and block starts. He listens intently, and works hard to improve, which I have seen develop over the season. He is polite, respectful to athletes, officials and volunteers and is very thankful. He warmed my heart recently when he gave me a box of chocolates and a hand written card thanking me for helping him'