Snow Sports Club cleans up at RMIT Sports Awards

RMIT Snow Sports athletes. (Photo: RMIT Sport)

RMIT’s Snow Sports Club cleaned up at the RMIT Sports Awards on Wednesday night, collecting a $2500 cheque as Vice Chancellor’s Club of the Year as well as winning Sport Team of the Year.

The 10-athlete snow sport squad competed at the Snow Sport Nationals in August against universities with 50-plus-athlete squads but still managed to finish third overall.

RMIT’s Athlete of the Year award went to rower and Diploma of Product Design student Ben Canham, who was crowned world champion with his team at the U23 World Rowing Championships earlier this year.

Redbacks Captain Tyson Lingham had a successful night, winning both the Outstanding Nationals Team Leader category and receiving an Outstanding Contribution to Sport award.

Outstanding Club Leader went to Nazarena Comperatore of the ITF Taekwondo Club, who balances her leadership and competition commitments with a full time job.

Awards were given to the male and female Indigenous Athletes of the Year.

Basketballer Thomas Watson and footballer April Goldring received the accolades.

Nationals Div 2 hockey team manager Dana Tieman was also awarded RMIT ambassador of the year.

The awards ceremony was enjoyably MC’d by touch football team manager Sam Quirke.

RMIT Vice Chancellor and President Martin Bean CBE’s speech stole the show however. Self-described as “without a doubt [the Redbacks’] number one fan”, Bean proudly reminisced on RMIT Sport’s most successful year in their 132 years of existence.

RMIT achieved their best overall result at UniSport Nationals, finishing fifth. The Redbacks community has grown to 22,000 active members across social sport, clubs and Nationals teams. eSports has seen a 300% membership increase to become RMIT’s second largest club.

Perhaps Bean’s proudest result, though, is the Div 1 men’s futsal team’s Nationals gold medal. The team beat UTS in the grand final, of which Bean is a graduate.

“Nothing gives me greater joy than sticking it to their vice-chancellor,” Bean said to laughs and cheers from the student-athlete crowd.

Alongside futsal, RMIT is 2019 National University Champion in women’s alpine skiing, men’s snowboard, tenpin bowling, women and men’s tennis, and women’s marathon.

The Redbacks are also back-to-back winners of the John White Spirit Trophy at Div 1 Nationals.

“Culture matters as much as results” was Bean’s summary of how the Redbacks operate.