The annual South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) Awards were held at the Adelaide Convention Centre last night, honouring the State’s top athletes, coaches and high-performance staff.

The awards presented recognise South Australians who have excelled in their sporting endeavours over the past 12 months, acknowledging their outstanding contributions, perseverance and achievements.

The winners included:

• SASI Para Athlete of the Year – Jed Altschwager and Nikki Ayers (Para-rowing)
• SASI Female Athlete of the Year – Steph Talbot (Basketball)
• SASI Male Athlete of the Year – Oliver Bleddyn (Cycling)
• SASI Junior Female Athlete of the Year – Lucy Sharman (Hockey)
• SASI Junior Male Athlete of the Year – Tayte Ryan (Cycling)
• SASI Coach of the Year – Christine MacLaren (Rowing)

Many memorable moments and medal wins from the Paris Olympic/Paralympic Games, and World Championship events were celebrated at the event.

Highlighting the team’s dedication to excellence on and off the field, other accomplishments within the SASI community were also commended.

The Amy Gillett-Safe Award was presented to Olympian Matthew Glaetzer – this is awarded annually as a memorial to one of SASI’s and Australia’s finest athletes and recognises an individual’s commitment to sport through passion and persistence.

Other award winners included SASI sport program athletes of the year, and the SASI Heart Award which went to Sports Engineer David Haydon for demonstrating exceptional passion and commitment to the programs, teams and athletes with whom he works.

In addition to these outstanding results and tonight’s important recognition of people, it’s been a momentous year for SASI with the $88 million SASI build at Mile End and the $15 million Australian Centre for Sports Aerodynamics.

Click here for the full list of winners.

Quotes

Attributable to Katrine Hildyard

Our much loved South Australian sporting stars enthralled us in a transformative year which saw remarkable performances at Olympic and Paralympic Games and a giant step taken to position South Australia as the sporting capital of our nation.

SASI athletes, coaches and other personnel are now operating from the state of the art $88m new SASI headquarters. The new SASI is breath-taking with athletes being supported to chase their sporting dreams in this incredible new environment.

Positioned next to the new world leading $15m Australian Centre for Sport Aerodynamics, the upgraded Athletics Stadium and soon to be redeveloped Netball SA Stadium, excitement is growing as work intensifies to prepare athletes in the lead up to 2032 in an environment that supports their future success.

I wholeheartedly congratulate all nominees and award winners on their incredible displays of sporting excellence, hard work, dedication and perseverance. These role models play a crucial role in promoting physical activity and health to all South Australians so they can enjoy the physical, mental and emotional health and wellbeing benefits of ‘having a go.’

Attributable to SASI Director Keren Faulkner

It’s been a transformative year for SASI where we are now operating out of new purpose-built facilities and working with more advanced technology to assist in driving the best possible results for our athletes.

But what truly sets SASI apart is the dedication, skills and talent of our people and it’s fantastic to recognise the achievements of our high-performance staff, coaches and athletes at the SASI Awards.

South Australians should feel an incredible sense of pride in all the award nominees and winners, and how they have represented our State this year.

Attributable to SASI Junior Male Athlete of the Year Tayte Ryan

I’d like to congratulate all the nominees for being nominated on this award and I’d like to say what a huge honour it is to win this award - it really means so much to be recognised for what my 2024 season was.

I’d also like to thank a few people that have helped my 2024 season be as successful as it was, so I’d like to thank Jimmy (Glasspool) my coach for putting in countless hours and effort into me as an athlete and helping me break that World Record.

I’d also like to thank Steve (Van Diepen) in the gym for getting me strong enough that I can ride faster on the track.