Rohan Phillips, the latest legend to join the Triathlon Victoria Legends of Multisport first plunged into a pool four months before his debut triathlon, the 1981 Nautilus Melbourne Triathlon, which he won. The winner’s prize was a ticket to compete in the February 1982 Ironman Hawaii. Swimming inexperience probably thwarted Phillip’s overall placing on the day, although he managed the twelfth fastest bike time with two punctures. On the run he happened to find himself keeping pace with Julie Moss as she ran into the lead, and then as she began to struggle he gave up on his own objectives and stayed with her. Not only did he witness the dramatic end of the women’s race (when second placed woman Kathleen McCarthy passed Moss as she crawled across the finish), Phillips was also in the television footage of the race shown repeatedly on sports programs around the world.
Back in Australia, Phillips went on to launch an unbroken winning streak over a period of approximately twenty months. Among his Australian wins, were the 1982 Hastings triathlon and 1982 Geelong Endurathon, both inaugural events, the 1983 Ocean Grove Triathlon, the Sri Chinmoy Triathlon held in Adelaide in March 1983, the second Hastings Triathlon, the first Gold Coast Triathlon in May 1983, the 1983 Melbourne [Nautilus Triathlon] and the 1983 XXXX Coral Coast Triathlon in Cairns. The winning streak only ended in November 1983 when Phillips competed in the second Geelong Endurathon just one week after racing in Hawaii.
Phillips brought an independent approach to the challenges presented by triathlon; he wore skin suits made by Hillman Cycles long before others picked up on the idea, bolted cycling shoes to his bike pedals to make transitions quicker, and kept a nutrition diary.
Rohan Phillips now joins Emma Carney, Stephen Foster, Tim Bentley and David and Penny Hansen as Victorian legends of Multisport.
In addition to recognising legends of our past, the second annual Triathlon Victoria Awards Breakfast recognised the efforts and achievements of members over the last season. Not only were the high performance achievements of athletes recognised, but the dedication and commitment of coaches, technical officials and volunteers from clubs across Victoria. The esteemed President’s Special Recognition Award was awarded to Craig Percival for his efforts raising over $80,000 for the John McClean Foundation whilst completing 8 ironman distance triathlons in 8 days in the 8 states and territories of Australia. In March 2016, what started as a thought bubble on a plane returning from Hawaii became reality when Craig Percival crossed the finish line at Albert Park. Whilst Craig redefined his mental and physical limits he also delivered on his promised fundraising target. Craig brought triathlon to mainstream media through channel 9’s news coverage and has featured prominently in the various triathlon and multisport mags. The premiere of the 8 minute trailer of the 8in8in8 documentary to be released later this year was a highlight for many attending.
2015/16 Triathlon Victoria Award winners and Victorian Triathlon State Series Champions are listed below:
2016 Triathlon Victoria Award Winners
- Male Junior Athlete of the Year – Kurt McDonald, Endurance Team
- Female Junior Athlete of the Year - Karolina Czjkowski
- Most Inspiring Performance Award – Andre Ascui, Hawthorn Triathlon Club and Stephane Vander Bruggen, Geelong Performance Coaching
- Club Coach Award – Brian Vernon, Mornington Peninsula Triathlon Club
- Technical Official Award – Andrew McGuire, SBRG Performance
- Club Volunteer Award - Roy Solterbeck, BCB Multisport
- President’s Special Recognition Award - Craig Percival, No Limits Endurance
- Legend of Multisport Award - Rohan Phillips
2015/16 Victoria Triathlon State Series Winners
- 12-15 years – Eleanor Karahasan and Daniel Bodilly
- 16-19 years – Sarah Dobie and Luke Burns
- 20-24 years – Alice Duff and Paul Marchant
- 25-29 years – Hannah Blanchett and Tyler Phillips and Ben O’Neill
- 30-34 years – Catherine Allison and Stephen Hadley
- 35-39 years – Nicole Robertson and Jason Shields
- 40-44 years – Louise Shaw and Clint Van Beveren
- 45-49 years – Helen Roach and Raymond Joy
- 50-54 years – Celine Hepworth and Mark Jankovskis
- 55-59 years – Elizabeth Gosper and Neale Pugh
- 60-64 years – Maureen Grant and Philip Hanley
- 65-69 years – Heather Carr and Paul Emery
- 70 + years – Ken Murley
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