Friday, 20 September 2024
Government House
Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC

Bujari gamarruwa

Diyn Babana Gamarada Gadigal Ngura

I greet you in the language of the Gadigal of the Eora Nation, the Traditional Owners and Custodians of this land. I pay my respects to Gadigal Elders, past, present and emerging, and Elders of the lands from which you have travelled for our ceremony today.

• Ms Lorraine Landon OAM, Board Director, Sports Inclusion Australia
• 2023 Virtus Global Games’ Australian Sports Medallists.

Welcome to Government House.

Today is a day of joy and pride for everyone here as we present the Australian Sports Medal to 17 elite athletes, coaches and officials.  

The medal was first awarded following the hugely successful Sydney Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2000, to recognise Australians who had contributed to sporting excellence in Australia, whether as competitors or for making a significant contribution to grassroots sport. 

On 4 December 2020, Her Majesty The Queen agreed to the amendment of regulations to recognise the significant achievement of Australians participating in declared international multi-sport events.  For that purpose, the award of the medal was backdated to include the Invictus Games held in Sydney in October 2018.

Today, 17 NSW-based Australians will receive their medal having been recognised for their contribution to sporting excellence for their achievements at the Virtus Global Games, held in Vichy France in June 2023.

Each of the Athletes, Coaches or Officials being presented their medal today has displayed the drive and the dedication to strive for excellence, that is at the heart of the Virtus Global Games. Indeed, the word ‘virtus’ comes from the Latin, meaning ‘excellence’.

With a medal haul of:

• 42 Gold
• 41 Silver, and
• 42 Bronze medals …

We tipped in 2^nd - to France with its host team advantage and far outperformed Italy, who were placed 3^rd. 

The Team’s success derived not only from the individual drive and competitiveness of the athletes, but from the inclusive approach we have to sport, where each Athlete is respected and where local competition provides pathways through to the State and National level.

Each elite Athlete selected in the Virtus and Paralympic pathways, receives high-performance coaching and the support of the Australian sporting community.  Being part of a true high-performance team, travelling overseas, away from family and support networks, has provided life-changing opportunities, personally, and has enabled athletes to be role models for those who follow in their footsteps.  At the same time, Australia is developing the high-quality specialised coaches and administrators who formed a vital role in getting our athletes to peak condition for the Games.  You are all part of ‘Team Australia’, supporting our athletes. 

Two particular achievements of members of this Team are worthy of special mention:

• The first comes from one of the youngest members of the team:

16-year-old Telaya Blacksmith, a proud Walpiri woman who has just returned from the Paralympics in Paris, where she made the final of the women’s 400m setting a new Australian Under 20 and Open record.  Telaya also competed in the long jump where she broke the Australian Under 20 record, finishing 9^th. Congratulations, Telaya.

• The second is the Gold Medal-winning Equestrian team at Vichy, which came together with just a few rides under their belt and riding on unfamiliar, foreign horses.

The success of this team at the 2023 Games means that, post-Games, Equestrian registrations have risen. Indeed, I have been told, the most senior member of this team – Andrew Driffield – has been waiting 20 years for the chance to compete in the Equestrian event!

To the NSW recipients of the Australian Sports Medal from the successful Virtus Global Games team in 2023 …

Congratulations!