Sports Awards of the Year 2008-Young athletes titles up for grabs |05 March 2009

Celebrating its silver jubilee in 2008, the crowning ceremony will start at 6.30pm.

Not only the top five senior male and female athletes will be crowned, but five young males and females will add their names to the growing list of winners.

Out of the 10 finalists in the senior female category three – athlete Lissa Labiche, table tennis player Anniessa Benstrong and volleyballer Marielle Bonne – also feature in the youth division.

Unlike in past years, all five male and female finalists in the youth category will be rewarded, and today we take a look at how all of them performed in 2008.

Athlete Lissa Labiche

Labiche had a good season as she made the Seychelles female high jump records hers. She won the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien gold medal with a height of 1.79m, which went down as Seychelles’ girl, youth, junior and senior records. The old Seychelles junior and senior records of 1.72m and 1.74m belonged to France-based Céline Laporte.

Labiche was also a gold medallist with a bar of 1.63 metres at the first Coupe de l’Océan indien in Reunion and won the silver medal with a height of 1.70m at the Southern Region Youth Athletics Championships in South Africa.

The 15-year-old qualified for the sixth Jeux de la Francophonie in Beirut, Lebanon, from September 27-October 6 and met the standard for the International Association of Athletics Federations’ World Youth Championships slated for Bressanone, Italy, from July 8-12.

Badminton player Alisen Camille

Camille started the 2008 season on a good note, winning the Curtain-raiser competition ladies’ singles title. She was the runner-up in the women’s singles, women’s doubles and mixed doubles of the Knockout competition. In the Closing Cup competition, she won the mixed doubles and finished second in the women’s doubles.

During the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien, the 16-year-old won two gold medals in the team event and mixed doubles as well as a bronze in the women’s singles.

Swimmer Shannon Austin

Austin competed in the ninth Fina World Championship in Manchester, UK, and the first Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, in 2008 but did not win any medal.

At the World Championship, she took part in the 50m freestyle (8.88 seconds), 50m breaststroke (37.34 seconds), 100m freestyle (1׃02.24), 400m freestyle (4׃42.15) and 800m freestyle (9׃42.33).

At the first Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, Austin clocked 2׃20.69 in 200m freestyle, 1׃04.77 in 100m freestyle, 29.47 seconds in 50m freestyle and 2:40.91 in 200m individual medley.

In local competitions, Austin, 16, registered times of 1׃04.78 in 100m freestyle, 28.84 seconds in 50m freestyle, 2׃29.59 in 200m freestyle, 5׃52.09 in 400m freestyle, 3׃21.94 in 200m individual medley and 37.72 seconds in 50m breaststroke.

Table tennis player Anniessa Benstrong

Benstrong retained the women’s singles gold medal in the individual competition of the second Zone 7 tournament in Reunion and teamed up with Godfrey Sultan to win the mixed doubles gold medal.

During the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien in Seychelles, she won the women’s singles gold medal and a bronze in the girls’ team event.

Benstrong, who also competed in the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, and reached the knockout stage, won the Monthly Challenge tournaments in March, April, May and June. She was a runner-up in September, but triumphed in the Curtain-raiser competition.

Volleyballer Marielle Bonne

Hard-hitter Bonne again towered over more experienced players in local and international competitions in 2008. On the local scene, she helped her club Arsu to win the Women’s Division One league, Seychelles Volleyball Federation Cup and Seychelles Volleyball Federation Shield titles. She reached the quarterfinal of the Curtain-raiser competition.

Bonne, 17, was instrumental in Arsu’s record sixth Indian Ocean Club Championship triumph and was voted the Most Valuable Player of the tournament held in Seychelles.

In the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien, she captained the country’s team to take the gold medal – a first for Seychelles in team sports in the biennial games.

He helped the Seychelles team to a fourth place finish in the 12th Women’s Junior African Nations Championships in Kenya.

Athlete Leeroy Henriette

Henriette was a member of the country’s Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien 4x100m gold medal-winning team, clocking 43.42 seconds. He also won the 200m bronze medal in 23.01 seconds.
The 17-year-old competed in the 400m race at the Coupe de l’Océan indien and Regional Youth Championship.

Locally, he took part in most competitions, notably the Federation Cup and National Championship.

Badminton player Joel Dubel

Defending Young Male Athlete of the Year Dubel was the toast of the Seychelles team during the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien, winning three gold medals in the team event, mixed doubles and men’s doubles. He was the men’s singles silver medallist.
 
At the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, India, he lost in the second round of the men’s singles. A 2-1 winner against Ben Li of the Isle of Man in the preliminary stage, Dubel fell 0-2 (4-21, 2-21) to Gura Sai Dutt from hosts India in the second round.

In local competitions, Dubel was the mixed doubles runner-up and finished fourth in the men’s singles of the Curtain-raiser tournament. He won the men’s doubles of the Closing Cup competition and was fourth in the men’s singles.

Judoka Carlos Labiche

Labiche won the 50kg minime category gold medal during the Club Championship in Mauritius.

In local competitions, the 15-year-old was first in his category during the Port Glaud Open, Praslin Open and Port Glaud Championship. He finished second in the National Championship.

Karateka Jigme Tsultrim

Competing in the under-15s green belt three stripes category, Tsultrim won two gold medals in sparring and kata and claimed a silver medal in weaponry at the Combat Tang Soo Do and Haedong Kumdo South African Championship in South Africa.

Volleyballer José Labiche

Labiche won a bronze medal with the country’s volleyball team during the Jeux de la Commission de la Jeunesse et des Sports de l’Océan indien.

In the local league, Praslinois Labiche, who also won a CJSOI high jump gold medal, played for the Junior team, who finished fourth in the second division championship.

G.G.