Teenage star Gawned wins Frank Osman Shield

Rising Albany star Tom Gawned has capped a superb last few months by winning the prestigious Frank Osman Memorial Shield at the Swimming WA 2019 Westpac Swimmer of the Year Awards at the weekend.

The gala awards were held at the Hyatt Regency Perth on Saturday night, with Gawned among four nominees for the Frank Osman Memorial Shield, won by the most consistent able-bodied swimmer at the State open and age long course championships aged 13-14.

A member of Albany Swim Club, Gawned was the recipient of the 2019 award after his dominant performances at State level in the past year.

The 15-year-old was thrilled to win the award, saying his versatility as a swimmer was one of his strongest assets.

“I had no idea, I was just listening and they read my name out,” Gawned said. “It is for the best performance overall of 13-14s at States and I think because I do all the strokes, my versatility helps.

“I am one of the top swimmers in WA for my age, and now aim to be one of the top swimmers at nationals.”

The Great Southern Grammar student is doing more gym training to help his development as an athlete.

He is also is preparing for his next major swim meet at the School Sport nationals in July.

Gawned was a recipient of a $1000 grant from the Great Southern Sports Talent Association recently and said using the funds for physiotherapy and visiting a sports psychiatrist had been beneficial.

“I’ve been to the physio a lot,” he said.

“Going to a sports psychiatrist to help with race preparation and training, I noticed that really helped with my performance at nationals.”