The UWA sporting community celebrated a year of outstanding achievement, leadership and community impact at the UWA Sport Awards on Friday 23 October at the Neil Donaldson Pavilion.
Student-athletes, volunteers, coaches and club members came together to recognise the people and programs shaping sport at UWA. The evening was hosted by MC Alexander Circosta and attended by members of the UWA Convocation, Callum Warner, Strategic Projects and Capability Manager at SportWest, UWA Sport General Manager Jake Wilkins, and members of the UWA Sports Council.
Proceedings began with a welcome address from UWA Sports Council President Georgia Whittaker, who reflected on the year of sport at UWA and presented the inaugural Student Leader award to J'aime Rhee.
Emeritus Professor Jenny Gregory AM, Warden of the UWA Convocation, presented the UWA Convocation Bursary to Keishin Ochi and Jayda Gledhill, while Ty Sangthong received the WM Nunn Bursary.
The UWA Badminton Club were proudly recognised for a significant milestone, celebrating 75 years of excellence, community and connection at UWA. Since its establishment in 1951, the club has produced 53 UWA Blues recipients and experienced remarkable growth in the past decade.
Three students were recognised with a UWA Sport Club Service Award for their sustained contribution to sport at UWA, including a minimum of three years of commitment and service to their UWA-affiliated club. The 2026 recipients were:
- Ava Myler, UWA Boat Club
- J’aime Rhee, UWA Volleyball Club
- Jacob Minchin, UWA Boat Club
Eleven members of the UWA sporting community were awarded Club Letters in recognition of outstanding sporting achievement or significant volunteer service to their club. The 2026 recipients were:
- Serena Hewes, UWA Athletics Club
- Lara Glendinning, UWA Boat Club
- Lynne Mannolini, UWA Boat Club
- Scott Howieson, University Cricket Club
- Bruce Jones, UWA Hockey Club
- Chris Webster, UWA Hockey Club
- Conor Hughes, UWA Rugby Club
- Gavin Lynn, UWA Rugby Club
- Nigel White, UWA Rugby Club
- Peter Nisbet, UWA Rugby Club
- Jordan Berryman, UWA West Coast Swimming Club
A new addition to the awards program in 2026, the Sport Initiative of the Year Award celebrated innovative ideas that create meaningful impact within the sporting community. The inaugural award was presented to the UWA Judo Club for its 9-Week Judo Beginner Course. Since launching in 2025, the program has welcomed 76 participants, providing a safe, structured and inclusive introduction to judo. The initiative demonstrates the club's commitment to accessibility and creating opportunities for long-term participation.
UWA Sport continued its commitment in recognising the incredible volunteers who are key drivers and contributors to sport at UWA and the wider community. This year, the Volunteer of the Year was awarded to Mackenzie Cullip, from the UWA Volleyball Club. Her leadership as Club President has been crucial in strengthening the Club's governance in 2026, which she has balanced alongside her medical studies and commitment as a long-standing Women's State League player.
The 2026 Coach of the Year award was presented to Will Stibbs, from the University Cricket Club. His outstanding leadership has guided the UWA Cricket Club through its most successful era in 60 years, securing historic T20 success, consecutive two-day titles and back-to-back WA Premier Cricket Club Championships. Will was also named WA Premier Cricket Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season and coached the UWA Maali T20 team in 2026.
Bachelor of Science student Kurtis Marschall was awarded the prestigious Sports Star of the Year award. This award recognises the individual achievements of UWA's most elite student-athletes. Kurtis claimed gold in the men's pole vault at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, setting a competition record with his 5.85m clearance. He also set his personal best of 6.00m earlier in the year, making him only the fourth Australian to clear the six-metre mark.
The evening concluded with the UWA Judo Club being named Champion Club after a standout year of growth, inclusion and success. The club became Australia's largest judo club, championing the pathway from grassroots to elite. The club demonstrated its commitment to student sport by financially supporting UWA judo student-athletes competing at UniSport Nationals, contributing to a dominant performance. Internationally, its athletes achieved gold-medal success at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, Oceania Championships, and European Open.
Beyond competition, the UWA Judo Club strengthened global connections through international exchanges, hosted visiting teams and delegates from Japan and Indonesia, and secured significant funding to support athlete development and cultural engagement.
The UWA Judo Club's success in 2026 reflects not only sporting excellence, but a commitment to building an inclusive and thriving community that creates opportunities for athletes at every stage of their journey.
Congratulations to all award nominees, finalists and winners, and thank you to all who attended.