Awards night recognises shining stars
April 22, 2012
Exercise physiologists from across Australia were recognised last night at the Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA) Awards Gala Dinner attended by over 200 guests at Jupiters Casino on the Gold Coast.
The ESSA night-of-nights saw Mia Rose from MEA Exercise Australia in Maroubra, New South Wales take home the 2011 Exercise Physiologist of the Year and Bodyfit NT, located in Parap in the Northern Territory, awarded the 2011 Exercise Physiology Practice of the Year.
Anita Hobson-Powell, Executive Officer at ESSA, said the gala dinner provided a great opportunity to bring the conference guests together to celebrate excellence and the continued growth of the profession.
“These awards recognise exceptional contributions to the Exercise Physiology profession and our ever-growing membership at ESSA demonstrates the increased value exercise physiologists offer to the community, both in the professional sporting arena and by enhancing the health of all Australians,” said Ms Hobson-Powell.
“Increasingly people appreciate the value of a trained professional to develop their exercise regime rather than turning to fitness trainers who are limited in their physiological knowledge. Our members are university trained experts who specialise in the delivery of exercise, lifestyle and behavioural modification programs for the prevention and management of chronic diseases and injuries.”
“These awards enable us to applaud those excelling in our profession as well as those at the start of their career.”
To this end, the jointly awarded 2011 ESSA Exercise Physiology Graduate of the Year was presented to Kassia Weston from The School of Medicine, Princess Alexandra Hospital in Brisbane and Peggy Huang from Sydney South West GP Link in New South Wales.
The 2011 ESSA Practicum Supervisor of the Year was awarded to Heidi Clarke from Gwynneville, New South Wales at Body Dynamics Illawarra for her contribution to providing support and development for students in the profession.
ESSA also recognised the most outstanding PhD thesis by awarding the 2011 ESSA Medal to Dr Julien Periard, who currently lives in Qatar, for his thesis titled ‘Physiological mechanisms limiting prolonged exercise performance in the heat’.
The awards gala dinner marked the closing of the 5th biennial conference hosted by Exercise & Sports Science Australia (ESSA) which saw an impressive line-up of international and Australian speakers over the three-day conference.
For more information on Exercise & Sports Science Australia please visit www.essa.org.au.
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