Former local swimming star, Ashley Nicholes, has taken out the 2024/2025 Gippstar Award at a function at the Moe RSL recently.
The 65th annual Gippstar Awards saw 120 guests gathered representing sportspeople teams and clubs from across Gippsland.
Netball Victoria Eastern Region, manager, Judi Buhagiar acted as the evening master of ceremonies, while several dignitaries from Gippsland’s various Local Government Authorities presented awards.
The Awards honoured exceptional athletic accomplishments by outstanding Gippsland sportspeople in a wide range of sports, from individual athletes as well as teams and clubs.
Sports represented included polocrosse, bocce, taekwondo, pistol shooting, Brazilian jiu jitsu, table tennis, swimming, shooting, netball, hockey, athletics, AFL, mountain biking, lawn bowls, cricket, cross country, modern pentathlon, tetrathlon, surf lifesaving, croquet, showjumping, basketball, football, and tennis.
Senior and junior Gippstar awards were presented to the monthly category winners from July 2024 to June 2025.
Nicholes continues to be one of Gippsland’s top swimmers, representing the Traralgon Swimming Club where he has set 88 Gippsland records in an outstanding career thus far.
Traralgon’s Kody Said won the junior award for his outstanding 2024/2025 swimming performance.
Said won multiple state and national gold medals, breaking various Gippsland open men’s records, and representing Victoria at the highest levels.
The Junior Team of the Year 2024/25 went to the Lindenow Primary School Bowls Team who won the state title, while the senior winner was the Traralgon Masters Swimming Team.
Wayne Seear (Warragul Little Athletics Club) and Jane Mitchell (Traralgon Swimming Club) shared the Special Achiever Award, with the Fish Creek Football Netball Club, winning the Club of the Year, bouncing back from November 2023 arson attack, which burned their club memorabilia, change rooms, social club rooms, and everything else inside those rooms.
The coveted Gippstar Gippsland Champion award went to high jump champion, Eleanor Patterson of Leongatha.
