By DEAN SMALLMAN
LAST weekend the Sunshine Beach SLSC Nippers, Cadets, Masters and Open competitors, along with a huge support crew, headed south to the Gold Coast for the 2015 Australian Pool Rescue Championships.
This three day event saw the best lifesavers in Australia demonstrate their lifesaving skills in a pool at the magnificent Gold Coast Aquatic Centre across a mix of disciplines, many of which for the first time viewer may look a little strange.
The championships started and ended under blue skies with Sunshine Beach SLSC once again, after their fantastic result at the Queensland state championships two weeks earlier, coming out well ahead of many of the powerhouse clubs both within the state and across Australia. The fourth place result once again showed that when this great club puts their hearts, minds and muscle into something, great things do happen.
Magnificent in team shirts and strong in voice, the Sunshine Crew were the most vocal of all teams and truly represented Surf Lifesaving in the most positive of fashions. With such great results and a sensational team dinner held on the Friday night this was a championship to remember.
Special mention to the girls in the team with super coach Jo Redwood and the feisty Natalie McMaster doing the club and coast proud with a host of gold medals.
Club President Craig Law, was so ecstatic with the team’s overall performance and camaraderie that on the return trip home, he diverted the team bus to the cultural heart of SE Queensland, Yatala, for a championship ending award-winning pie or two from the famous Yatala Pies – now that’s a president that knows how to spoil his well-deserving athletes.
This is the last major event before the endurance championships on the Gold Coast in late September, which promises to be another great event as Sunshine relishes under super coaches Clint Robinson (OAM) and Max Pettigrove (Club Legend). The Nipper season also gets underway in late September and with Sign-On day at the Noosa Aquatic centre on September 5 from 9am, the Junior Activities Committee is extremely busy ensuring that all families have the best possible experience in the 2015/16 season.
For anyone wanting to find out more about Junior Activities at Sunshine SLSC come and see for yourself at the sign-on day and with no cap on Nipper numbers this season, this is going to be another season of fun and fanfare for the whole family.
