ʯÁñÊÓƵ

The ʯÁñÊÓƵ Student Association (ʯÁñÊÓƵSA) Sport Blues Awards will recognise students who have represented ʯÁñÊÓƵ at a high level with distinction in local, state or national competitions with a special plaque.

Originating in the 1800s as part of the rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge universities, students would receive a blue ribbon and then later a blue jacket when representing their university in sports.

The concept has since been adopted by various universities across Australia, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand.

ʯÁñÊÓƵSA Sport and Recreation Manager Jason Conn said the Awards brought ʯÁñÊÓƵ into line with governing body UniSport Australia and other universities across the country.

“We’ve seen how much of a tradition it has become for those universities and how prestigious it is for those students,” he said.

“There’s a lot of intrigue amongst the students, and when you explain the importance of these awards for ʯÁñÊÓƵ and the sports department, that’s only going to grow as the years go by.”

Mr Conn said ʯÁñÊÓƵ had been recognised on both a national and international sporting level, with students having played for the ʯÁñÊÓƵ Townsville Fire WNBL team, North Queensland Cowboys, and the former Townsville Crocodiles NBL team.

ʯÁñÊÓƵ women’s netball team player Mya Thomas said she was excited by the new Awards.

“It’s great to see the university recognising students who are competing at a high level,” she said.

Aimee Jones, who plays for ʯÁñÊÓƵ’s mixed touch football team, said the Awards would help encourage students to pursue their sporting dreams.

“It’ll definitely get more students interested and wanting to play at this sort of level,” she said.

The pair represented ʯÁñÊÓƵ at this week’s UniSport Nationals - Queensland competition on the Gold Coast.

“I’ve always enjoyed playing touch football and you don’t get to play mixed at a competitive level that much in Townsville, so it’s good to go down to the Gold Coast and compete against other unis at a high level,” Ms Jones said.

The Blues Awards will be broken into two groups – the Blue Award for students who have participated at a state or national level with distinction and Half Blue Award for students who have participated at a high level with distinction including local or state.

Several trophies will also be awarded at the ceremony including Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year and the Spirit of Sport.

Mr Conn said each sport will have its own judging criteria tailored to North Queensland, with a judging panel comprising of former athletes and those who have experience in a variety of sports.

Townsville will host their Blues Awards at the ʯÁñÊÓƵSA Fitness Centre on November 26, while Cairns will have their Awards the following day at the ʯÁñÊÓƵ Boathouse.

To nominate, click .

Nominations close on November 3.