THE Australian Life Saving Team have named a high performance squad of 30, including Kiama product Ali Day, and a pathways squad of 34, featuring Mollymook SLSC's Brock Scrivener and Payton Williams and Nowra-Culburra junior Kirsty Higgison, to lead Australia to victory at Life Saving World Championships 2020 (LWC2020).
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Following a victorious Lifesaving World Championships 2018 campaign, the Australian Life Saving Team (ALT) welcome back all 12 world championship team members as part of the LWC2020 high performance squad.
Head coach Kurt Wilson expressed his delight with the amount of talent and athletes returning to the squad.
"With the athletes returning, not only those from last year's world championship team but the wider squad we couldn't be in a better position moving forward," Wilson said.
"To have such a strong level of continuity throughout each discipline will only make us stronger moving forward.
"We have been able to maintain a really strong group dynamic and culture set across the squad while hitting the majority of our key performance targets across the last campaign.
"The next two years will be really exciting for the program because there is plenty of growing left to do amongst us as a squad."
Joining Day, who now competes for Surfers Paradise, in the high performance squad are Alexandria Headland's Aly Bull and Lani Pallister, Avoca Beach's Riley Fitzsimmons, BMD Northcliffe's Harriet Brown, Maddy Dunn, Courtney Hancock and Georgia Miller, Currumbin's Ben Carberry, Brittany Brymer, Elizabeth Forsyth, Hayden White, Chelsea Gillett, Keiran Gordon, Prue Davies and Matt Davis, Kurrawa's Matt Bevilacqua, Matt Poole and Bree Masters, Manly's Kendrick Louis, Maroochydore's Sam Bell, Newport's Blake Drysdale and Max Brooks, Noosa Heads' Lana Rogers, North Bondi's Lizzie Welborn,, Shelley Beach's Bradley Woodward, Sorrento's Jackson Symonds, Trigg Island's Jake Smith, Tweed Heads/Coolangatta's Mariah Jones and Umina's Jemma Smith.
The Australian Life Saving Team will introduce a pathways squad featuring the best up and coming talent from across the country who have the potential to represent their country at future world championship events in 2022 and beyond.
"Our aim is to streamline the pathway and understanding for future athletes to make a world championship team along with providing the opportunity to attend international events such as Sanyo Bussan Cup to further their development," Wilson said.
"As a coaching staff we will continue adding athletes to this pathways squad should their results throughout the coming season warrant selection."
The Mollymook pair and Higgison, who now trains with Surfers Paradise, are in the pathways squad alongside BMD Northcliffe's Bailey Armstrong, Mitchell Coombes, Tahlia Dilkes and Jack Curran, City of Perth/Maroochydore's Madison Howe, Cudgen Headland's Anthea Warne, Currumbin's Rachel Eddy, Ky Kinslea, Corey Fletcher and Jacob Loughnan, Elouera's Michael Hanna, Hal Moon Bay's Brendon Smith, Kurrawa's Bay Wildin-Snedden, Jaosn Gough, Brielle Cooper and Taylor Stickler, Manly's Jay Furniss and Naomi Scott, Maroochydore's Tiarnee Massie and Hayden Cotter, Mermaid Beach's Emma Dick and James Lacy, Newport's Jackson Borg and Emily Doyle, North Cronulla's Alexandra and Leah Rampoldi, Redhead's Nicola Owen, Shelley Beach's James Koch, Surfers Paradise's TJ Hendy, Trigg Island's Callan Smith and Wanda's Jamee Smith.
Pinnacle events for the Australian Life Saving Team in 2019 include International Surf Rescue for surf and beach athletes which takes from September 28 to October 2 in Durban, South Africa, while pool rescue athletes will look to defend their German Cup and Orange Cup titles across two weekends in November.
The Australian Life Saving Team will announce a pathways team of 10 athletes to compete at Sanyo Bussan Cup next week which will be held on June 22-23 at Momochi Beach, Japan.
