WEEKEND WRITE-UP: Three Selected for Tokyo and Three National Swimming Champions

In VIS sport, three track and field athletes were selected to the Tokyo 2020 team, whilst our swimmers went head-to-head at national championships.

Swimming

Some of our rising stars went head to head in the swimming pool at the 2021 Australian Swimming Championships last week, with Brendon Smith, Matt Temple and Bowen Gough all winning gold medals.

In the final individual event of the first morning - the Men's 400m Individual Medley - VIS scholarship holder, Brendon Smith blitzed the competition in an impressive 4:15.48, touching nearly six seconds ahead of his Nunawading counterpart Elliot Rogerson (4:21.09). MLC Flipper, Thomas Hauck (All Saints GC), took third in 4:21.17 to round out the top three spots.

The following day, VIS scholarship holders Bowen Gough and Matt Temple fought it out to the finish line, with Gough just pipping out Temple to win his first national title. After receiving the silver in 2019, Gough – in a cool 1:57.08 – out touched Temple who claimed silver in 1:57.92.

Brendon Smith added to his medal tally, clocking 3:51.04 in the Men's 400m Freestyle event.

After just missing the gold in the Men's 200m Butterfly earlier in the meet, Matt Temple wen one better to triumph in the 100m fly. Posting a very competitive time of 51.83, Temple edged out Shauun Champion and fellow VIS scholarship holder Bowen Gough.

Daniel Cave also claimed a national medal, placing third in the Men's 200m Breaststroke final in a time of 2:14.22.

Athletics

Brooke Stratton, Linden Hall and Catriona Bisset have all secured their spot on the Australian Olympic Team after a successful National Championships in Sydney over the weekend.

The three Victorian Institute of Sport scholarship holders, were part of the 15 track and field athletes that were selected to the team at the conclusions of the Australian Athletics Championships.

Athletes selected after the Championships either qualified for auto-nomination as national champions who had achieved a Tokyo qualifying standard to the AOC under the Athletics Australia nomination criteria, or as discretionary nominations for athletes with a Tokyo qualifier and satisfying Athletics Australia’s nomination criteria.

Australian Record holder Brooke Stratton is "over the moon" to be going to her second Olympic Games after an ongoing injury threatened to derail her season.

"I was a bit unsure if I was actually going to be able to make it out here today, so to end up with a 6.84m is a great way to finish off the domestic season", Stratton said.

Cat Bisset, another Australian record holder, was so relieved when she crossed the finish line in first and automatically qualified herself on the Australian Olympic Team.

"I wanted to win so badly, I wanted to make that automatic Olympic spot, I've just been dreaming and running through this moment in my head for weeks now, so I don't think I've ever been so relieved and so happy after a race." Bisset said.

After locking away two Olympic qualifiers already this season, Linden Hall took out the 1500m race, to secure an automatic nomination for the Australian Olympic Team. Having recently, broken the Australian record, she used this race as an opportunity to learn, and locking herself into the team was just "the cherry on the top of a magical domestic season."

Skateboarding

Victorian Institute of Sport Future Talen athlete, Charlotte Heath took out first place in the King of Concrete skateboarding competition in Brunswick on Sunday.

"I had such a fun skate at King Of Concrete this arvo, I'm so stoked with 1st place, thanks for another sick contest." She took to her social media after the competition.

Shooting

VIS scholarship holder, Mitch Iles backed up his recent victory at the Yarra Valley Gran Prix when winning the men's Trap final at the NSW ISSF Shotgun State tiles at Newcastle Lake Macquarie Clay Target Club last weekend.

The 2016 Rio Olympian shot a brilliant 45/50 targets to comfortably defeat Tokyo Olympic team member, Thomas Grice (37/50) and Gabriel Sensi (31/50).

In the women’s Trap final, Victorian teenager Kiara Dean caused a boilover when snaring the gold medal ahead of Tokyo Olympic Games team members Laetisha Scanlan and Penny Smith. 