Moffatt And Rickard Are Ais Athletes Of The Year

THE HON KATE ELLIS MP
MINISTER FOR SPORT


MEDIA RELEASE


EMBARGO: 10.30pm, 12 November 2009

Moffatt and Rickard are AIS Athletes of the Year

Minister for Sport Kate Ellis has tonight announced triathlete Emma Moffatt and swimmer Brenton
Rickard as the 2009 AIS Athletes of the Year.

Ms Ellis made the announcement at a ceremony at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra this
evening.

It's the sixth time in the award's 26-year history that the AIS's top honour has been jointly awarded.

Ms Ellis said the performances of Moffatt and Rickard are inspiring for other sportspeople and the wider
Australian community.

"Both athletes are world class champions who hold themselves with great dignity and honour. They are
doing the Australian Institute of Sport and Australia proud - on and off the sporting stage," Ms Ellis said.

"Their achievements in the international arena this year are remarkable and rank among some of the
truly great moments in Australian sport.

Emma Moffatt was crowned UTI World Champion after winning five gold medals in this year's Dextro
Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series.

The 25 year-old from the Gold Coast won a bronze medal at last year's Beijing Olympics and is now
ranked number one in the world following her stellar year.

Twenty-six year old Brenton Rickard broke the world record to win gold in the 100-metre breaststroke
at the 2009 FINA World Swimming Championships.

The Gold Coast resident's outstanding performance was named Swimming Australia's Speedo Golden
Moment of the Year.

The AIS Junior Athlete of the Year title was shared by 20 year-old Adelaide cyclist Jack Bobridge and
20 year-old netballer Amy Steel from Melbourne.

Jack Bobridge became the first Australian to win the under-23 time trial at the UCI Road World
Championships and Amy Steel was a key member of the Australian 21-and-under netball team that
won gold at the 2009 World Youth Netball Championships.

Other major AIS awards presented at the AIS Arena included:
AIS Coach of the Year: Triathlete Craig Walton
AIS Team of the Year: Sailors Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen
AIS Program of the Year: AIS track endurance/road cycling.

The full list of award winners is on the 2009 Honour Roll at ausport.gov.au

Press Secretary: Jayne Stinson 0458 547 512 AIS: David Packwood 0418 605 541