Belgravia Leisure and Moreton Bay Regional Council congratulate 11-year-old Isabella, the proud winner of the GOswim Little Champions challenge. Isabella has won a visit and training session with four-time Olympian and Australian Dolphin Emily Seebohm.

Isabella has been swimming in the GOswim program at Lawnton Aquatic Centre since she was eight years old, all the while progressing through the swimming and water safety levels and is now part of the GOswim Academy Squad. Lawnton Aquatic Centre was one of the many venues to participate in the GOswim Little Champions campaign, which ran across Australia through the 2021 winter season.

Moreton Bay Regional Council Mayor Peter Flannery said facilities in the region like the Albany Creek Leisure Centre (where the training session took place) were fast-becoming hotbeds for sporting talent and said the club’s swimmers would take plenty away from the opportunity to be coached by one of the country’s greatest swimmers.

“The 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games is just around the corner, and the next generation of Australian athletes could very well be from our region,” Mayor Flannery said.

“To have such an accomplished swimmer be so generous with her time means the world to our swimmers and adds to the millions of dollars we’ve invested in sporting facilities to give our kids the best possible opportunity.

“With so many young athletes coming from our region and so eager to learn from the likes of Emily, it’s vital that we create legacy infrastructure that benefits them now, during the games and into the future.”

Cheryl McLennan, Belgravia Leisure Queensland Aquatics Manager, said she was delighted to present Isabella with this unique, once in a lifetime prize.

“It is fantastic to be able to award Isabella with the amazing prize of the training session with an Australian Dolphin and we look forward to hosting her,” McLennan said.

Young Isabella was very surprised to hear she had won the prize and couldn’t wait for her training session with Emily Seebohm.

“When I first finished my (GOswim Little Champions) sticker card, I had been asking nearly every swim lesson ‘has the competition been drawn?’ And then they said, ‘yes it’s been drawn, and you might have been the winner!’

Isabella’s mum Brooke said it was a fantastic prize to win.

“This competition is such an amazing initiative for little people. To meet an Olympian at their age and talk to their idols, it’s something to aim for and keep pushing further in their swimming career.”

GOswim is a partnered initiative by Belgravia Leisure and Swimming Australia, aimed at delivering a new and effective swimming and water safety program. GOswim is available at selected Belgravia Leisure managed venues nationwide.

Despite lockdowns in New South Wales and Victoria, there were over 6,000 entries for the GOswim Little Champions challenge nationwide.

Find out more about GOswim here: www.goswimaustralia.com.au