Sam Rizzo says he is getting back to reality very slowly as the excitement from his first Commonwealth Games experience is yet to wear off.    

The 17-year-old para-athlete arrived in Buninyong in the early hours of Tuesday morning and was back at school by Wednesday.

Click here to read the full article on the Ballarat Courier website & watch an interview with Sam.

Buninyong’s wheelchair athlete Sam Rizzo took centre stage at the Carrara Stadium track as he competed in a Commonwealth Games final on Tuesday night.

The 17-year-old appeared composed ahead of his biggest event yet, the men’s T54 1500m final, and remained close to the middle of the pack for most of the race.

Rizzo finished sixth with a time of 3:14.16 minutes.

Click here to read the rest of the article, and watch the race, on the Ballarat Courier website

Buninyong’s wheelchair track star Sam Rizzo has qualified for the Commonwealth Games Men’s T54 1500m final. 

The 17-year-old finished fourth in heat one with a time of 3:12.91, with fellow Australian Jake Lappin in first spot setting a Games record of 3:11.72.

Click here to read the rest of the article on the Ballarat Courier website

West Vic Academy of Sport representatives have taught Horsham College students about strength and conditioning during workshops on Friday.

Chris Radford, a former Horsham College student, put youngsters enrolled in the college’s peak performance program through a series of warm-up exercises and stretches to educate them about injury prevention.

Click here to read the full article and watch the video from the Wimmera Mail Times

Brad Saunders and Hayley Wilson, who are among the first to win scholarships with the Victorian Institute of Sport's new skateboarding program, are on the shortlist for Australia’s first Olympic team in the sport at Tokyo in 2020.

Click here to read the full article from The Age

Teenage wheelchair para-athlete Sam Rizzo is Ballarat’s newest Commonwealth Games representative.

The Damascus College Year 12 student will compete in the T53-T54 1500 metres on the Gold Coast next month.

Click here to read the full article on the Ballarat Courier website

FedUni WestVic Academy of Sport athlete and Damscus College student, Sam Rizzo, has been selected to represent Australia in next month’s Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

Rizzo, 17, from Buninyong, has been selected to compete in the T54 1500m track event.

Harry Sharp and Sam Rizzo both took home a Wunhym Trophy on Wednesday night after sharing the honours as Ballarat’s best junior sportsperson of 2017.

Rizzo, who competes in wheelchair track racing, collected silver and bronze medals at the World Para-Athletics Junior Championships, where he was flag bearer for Australia.

While there was a stack of other medals, records and race wins, it was the honour of carrying the flag that the Damascus College student rated highest from his achievements in 2017.

Cyclist Graeme Frislie and skateboarder Brad Saunders have become the first FedUni WestVic Academy of Sport athletes to be given scholarships with the Victorian Institute of Sport.

Frislie, a student at Bacchus Marsh Grammar, has been awarded a tier one Sports Program Scholarship, while Saunders, who attends Beaufort Secondary College, won a Future Talent Program Scholarship.

The Victorian Institute of Sport (VIS) has awarded two athletes from the FedUni WestVic Academy of Sport with Scholarships for 2018.
Sixteen-year-old cyclist, Graeme Frislie, a student at Bacchus Marsh Grammar, has been awarded a Tier 1 Sports Program Scholarship, whilst fifteen-year-old Skateboarder Brad Saunders, a student at Beaufort Secondary College, has been awarded a Future Talent Program Scholarship.
This is the first time FedUni WestVic Academy of Sport athletes have received a VIS Scholarship, since inception.