Cara Feain-Ryan (University of Queensland, Athletics) and Reece Holder (Queensland University of Technology, Athletics) received the Student-Athlete of the Year awards on an evening which saw a total of 11 prizes awarded for achievement in university sports.

Feain-Ryan won the 1500m at last year's national championships before taking 3000m steeplechase gold at the FISU World University Games in Chengdu, China. She finished 20th overall at at the Budapest World Championships and improved her personal best by nine seconds.

Fellow track performer Holder just missed out on 400m gold at the World University Games, clocking an Olympic qualification time of 44.79 as he was beaten in a photo finish by Portugal's João Coelho. That was the best run by an Australian for 17 years and placed the QUT Elite Athlete Program ambassador fifth on the country's 400m all-time list.

Olympic freestyle skiing gold medallist Jakara Anthony, who won the moguls title at Beijing 2022, added another accolade to her collection as she won the Most Outstanding Performance by a Student-Athlete. The 25-year-old from Cairns dominated the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup, winning five out of six events in 2023 on the way to retaining her moguls Crystal Globe. Anthony is studying business at Deakin University.

Curtis McGrath earned the Most Outstanding Performance by a Student-Athlete with a Disability having won his 11th Paracanoe world title at August's ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships in Duisburg, Germany. The 36-year-old will co-captain the Australian Paralympic team at Paris 2024.

Hosting guests from the university sector including student athletes, UniSport Life Members and industry partners, the 2024 UniSport Gala dinner was a celebration of the success of the industry from the previous year. UniSport Australia's CEO Mark Sinderberry said he was delighted to see the community come together to celebrate their achievements.

"Our athletes and Universities once again showed that Australia is home to some of the most exciting talent in the world with stunning performance in both National and International competitions in 2023." Mr Sinderberry commented.

“With student engagement and enjoyment while participating in National University sport events increasing, and more records being broken year on year, it’s important for us to take a moment to celebrate the achievements of every individual, team, university and community.

“I congratulate not just our Sport Award Winners, but all university members for their efforts and contributions to sport over the past 12 months."

FULL WINNER LIST: 

Most Outstanding Performance by a Student-Athlete with a Disability
Winner: Curtis McGrath
Degree: Bachelor of Aviation Management, Griffith University
Sport: Canoe Sprint 

Most Outstanding Performance by an Indigenous Student-Athlete
Winner: Emily Watts
Degree: Bachelor of Education (Health and Physical Education), University of Sydney
Sport: Cycling 

Most Outstanding Performance by a Student-Athlete
Winner: Jakara Anthony
Degree: Bachelor of Business, Deakin University
Sport: Freestyle Skiing 

Student-Athlete of the Year (Female)
Winner: Cara Feain-Ryan
Degree: Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours), The University of Queensland
Sport: Athletics 

Student-Athlete of the Year (Male)
Winner: Reece Holder
Degree: Bachelor of Urban Development, Queensland University of Technology
Sport: Athletics 

Most outstanding University sport project or program
Winner: Women in Sport Leadership Retreat, Monash University 

Most outstanding University sport project or program
Winner: RMIT Sports Media Program, RMIT University 

Most outstanding contribution by a student volunteer
Winner: Adila Abdul Halim
Degree: PHD in Astrophysics, The University of Adelaide
Sport: Swimming 

Club leadership award
Winner: La Trobe University Football Club (AFL), La Trobe University
Sport: AFL 

Official of the Year
Winner: Jessica Musson
Degree:  Bachelor of Business, University of South Australia
Sport: Netball 

Team of the Year
Winner: USYD 3X3 Basketball Men, University of Sydney
Degree:  Bachelor of Business, University of South Australia
Sport: 3X3 Basketball