Felicity Chan and Emmanuel Missak claim Hills Shire Times’ top Local Sports Star awards
An elite swimmer and a passionate football player have taken out the Hills Shire Times top awards at the 2018 Local Sports Stars gala awards night
Hills Shire
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Elite swimmer Felicity Chan and passionate footballer Emmanuel Missak have taken out the top prizes for the Hills Shire Times at the 2018 Local Sports Stars gala awards night at Bankstown Sports Club.
Felicity, 16, of Castle Hill was named this year’s Junior Sports Star winner while eight-year-old West Pennant Hills local Emmanuel won the Young Sporting Spirit award.
Swimming may be regarded as an individual sport but Felicity credits her supporters for her outstanding results in the pool.
She dominated at this year’s Australian School Swimming Championships, claiming gold in 50m breaststroke, 100m breaststroke and 4 x 50m medley relay.
Felicity also narrowly missed out on 100m breaststroke gold at the Australian Age Swimming Championships.
She says that she owes a lot of thanks to her support networks for her achievements both in and out of the pool.
“I’m really glad that I’m surrounded by people that can influence me positively and that I can look up to as role models,” Felicity said.
“I really appreciate my parents for all their hard work as well and owe a lot to them.”
Meanwhile Emmanuel found an escape in football when his one-year-old brother was diagnosed with a malignant tumour in his spine in January.
His unwavering passion for the game even served to inspire his teammates and coaches throughout the year.
In other categories, the overall Young Sporting Spirit award went to Forestville footballer Jacob Trzecinski, 17, while 16-year-old Strathfield diver Sam Fricker was named the overall Junior Sports Star.
The event also saw a host of current stars from all walks of the sporting landscape, including high jumper Brandon Starc and NSW Swifts player Sarah Klau, gather to meet the stars of the future and their families.