Moffatt & Alexander our top performers
Craig Alexander has taken out top honours at Triathlon Australia’s awards night, being voted by his peers as the 2009 Athlete of the Year and also winning Male Performance of the Year for the successful defense of his Ironman World Championship in Hawaii.
For Alexander, who was in Mooloolaba on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast to accept the awards, it was the latest in a long line of accolades for his outstanding successes, including taking out the prestigious Australian Sports Performance of the Year.
“To be voted the best athlete by your peers is very humbling, especially when you consider the calibre of athletes we have in this sport in Australia,” Alexander said. “To be successful you have to have a good team around you and the support network I have is amazing and I think that makes all the difference – I’m just the bloke they trot out on race day.”
The 36-year-old hinted that he would be in contention for such awards for some time yet.
“Triathlon is a great sport – it challenges you and you’re constantly looking at ways you can improve across all three disciplines. I still love it as much as I ever did . . . the training and racing and the opportunity to get the best out of yourself.”
Emma Moffatt took out the award for Female Performance of the Year, having won four races in the 2009 Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series to snare her maiden world title. Unable to accept her award, Moffatt was busy winning the 5km fun run as part of the Mooloolaba Triathlon Festival in what was a good sign as part of a revamped preparation for the world championship opener in Sydney on April 11. Moffatt suffered a break in her shoulder six weeks ago when she fell from her bike and is racing the clock to be fit.
The Chris Hewitt Emerging Athlete of the Year Award went to James Seear for his efforts in snaring a silver medal in the Under 23s at the 2009 ITU Triathlon World Championships on the Gold Coast.
The sport’s leading juniors were also recognised, with Holly Aitken and Drew Viles collecting annual scholarships from major sponsor 2XU after each taking overall honours in the Australian Junior Triathlon Series.
