The 2024 Griffith University Blues Awards celebrated the exceptional achievements of our student-athletes who have excelled in both their sporting endeavors and academic pursuits in this Olympic year.
On a night when two more alumni were inducted into the University’s Sport Hall of Fame, the Awards night featured a brand-new category, the Junior Athlete of the Year.
This award recognised a Griffith student athlete who represented Australia at an international underage level.
The inaugural recipient was Torrie Lewis (Bachelor of Cyber Security), a debut Olympian who made waves at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Alongside her Olympic debut, Torrie claimed a silver medal at the World Junior Athletics Championship in the 200m, and currently holds the Australian record in the 100m.
The awards evening also celebrated the First Peoples Athlete of the Year, a new category aimed at honoring an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander athlete actively studying at Griffith University, who showed outstanding athletic performance over the past year.
This year, the award went to Leesa Mi-Mi (Bachelor of Education) a talented netballer who plays for the Sunshine Coast Lightning.
Leesa played a pivotal role in her team reaching the final series and recently competed for Australia in the Fast Fives.
Professor Jonathan Bullen, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Indigenous), presented Leesa with this well-deserved award.
Recognising academic excellence in sport, the Academic Athlete of the Year award was presented to a Full Blue recipient who achieved the highest grade point average while balancing the demands of elite-level sport.
This 2024 awardee was Susan Seipel, a remarkable para-athlete who excelled both academically and in her sport of Para-canoe.
Susan, who is studying for a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), not only maintained an outstanding GPA but also medaled at the 2024 Paralympics, taking to three the number of medals won at three Paralympic Games.
The night then moved to the highly anticipated Most Outstanding Athletic Achievement awards, which celebrated the athletes who have reached the pinnacle of their respective sports.
These awards were fiercely contested, with many exceptional performances considered.
The Most Outstanding Athletic Achievement (able-bodied) award was presented to Jessica Fox, an MBA student and four-time Olympian, who performed extraordinary feats in Paris.
Jess made history by becoming the first athlete to win two canoe slalom golds at the same Olympic Games, extending her Olympic medal count to six – a record unmatched in her sport.
Her success in Paris solidified her place as one of Australia’s greatest Olympians.
While Jess couldn’t attend in person, she sent a heartfelt video message expressing her gratitude for this honor.
The Most Outstanding Athletic Achievement (para-athlete) award went to Tom Gallagher (Bachelor of Architectural Design), whose crowning glory was at the Paralympics.
Tom won Australia’s first Gold medal of the Games in the men’s S10 50m freestyle with a blistering time of 23.40.
He also secured a bronze medal in both the 100m freestyle and 100m backstroke.
Tom’s incredible performance in Paris was a testament to his dedication, talent, and determination, and we congratulate him on this outstanding achievement.
A number of Griffith elite student athletes were on hand to be congratulated for achieving Half Blue and Full Blue awards.
Another two Griffith alumni were inducted into the University’s Sports Hall of Fame with four-time Olympian Leisel Jones (Bachelor of Psychological Science (2023) and two-time Para-Olympian and wheelchair basketballer Matt McShane (Bachelor of Industrial Design 2020) joining the likes of Naomi McCarthy OAM, Sara Carrigan, and Robert Newberry.
