Summer is that marvellous time of year when the AOC, like many Australians, laps up some of the best of what sport has to offer.
Summer is that marvellous time of year when the AOC, like many Australians, laps up some of the best of what sport has to offer.
As we write this blog some of Australia’s most promising London 2012 talent, our new generation of cyclists, are creating “jaw-dropping” shockwaves that impressed even seven-time Tour de France winner, Lance Armstrong. Youngster Jack Bobridge, 21, won the National Road Race Championship in Victoria with “probably the bravest and most brilliant solo finish the event has seen”. It was heart-warming to see Alexis Rhodes in unstoppable form as she won her first National Road Race Championship- the life threatening injuries Rhodes sustained in 2005 now a distant memory. The Tour Down Under in Adelaide from Jan 17-23 also boasts a star studded line-up and the National Track Championships will start on Jan 30 to cap off a busy month for our cyclists.
The Hopman Cup, Brisbane, Sydney and Hobart Internationals are whetting the appetites of tennis fans as they lead toward the big one, the Australian Open from Jan 17-30. Dual Olympians Sam Stosur (2008, 2004) and Lleyton Hewitt (2008, 2000) will be desperate to claim wins at the Open. Stosur, currently ranked World Number 6 and guided by one of our 2012 Olympic Team Athlete Liaison Officers, Layne Beachley, is in impressive form and we hope she can crack her first Grand Slam victory at home. Hewitt needs to return to form as he looks to 2012 as a unique opportunity to play at Wimbledon twice- with Wimbledon also hosting the tennis during the London 2012 Olympics.
National Championships will take place in canoe/kayak slalom (Jan 12-13) in Nymboida, NSW and North Sydney Pool will host the Super Swim Series on Jan 29-30. The Victorian Open International Competition in modern pentathlon will be held in Melbourne on Jan 21-24.
In football the Asian Cup will be held in newly elected 2022 World Cup city, Qatar from Jan 7-29. Also competing abroad in January is the Australian handball team at the World Handball Championships in Sweden (Jan 13-30) and the IWF Weightlifting Grand Prix will be held in Fujian, China from Jan 15-17.
Many of our Winter Olympic stars will be competing in World Championships as we enjoy the sunshine. These include Snowboard (Spain, Jan 14-23), Speed Skating (Netherlands, Jan 22-23), Luge (Italy, Jan 29-30) and Freestyle Skiing (USA, Jan 30-Feb 5).
For athletes and sports fans alike, with months as busy as this, the 18 month run to London will fly by like Bobridge down the home straight. As the news breaks we will update the AOC website with key stories from all of these events.