Jessica Fox OAM and Richard Fox MBE (below) 2024 Sport NSW Awards.
Jessica Fox OAM and Lauren Parker are the official multi-Award-winning megastars of NSW sport, after capturing the respective Athlete of the Year award and Athlete of the Year with a Disability award respectively at the spectacular NSW Champions of Sport Ceremony at The Star Event Centre in Pyrmont on Monday night.
It was the sixth time Jess has been named Sport NSW’s Athlete of the Year, following success in 2013, 2017, 2018, 2021 (shared with Cate Campbell) and 2023.
Jess is indisputably regarded as the world’s greatest-ever Paddle athlete, earning her sixth Award honour after becoming the first canoe slalom athlete to capturing gold medals in both the women’s K1 and C1 Slalom events at this year’s Paris Olympic Games. Jess also won the K1 and K1 team’s events at the 2023 World Championships, became the first paddler to win 50 World Cup medals and is the first person to win three gold medals in one World Cup event.
Her astonishing year was further decorated by being chosen as the Australian Olympic Team’s female flag bearer at the Paris Olympic Games, and she was later voted as a member of the International Olympic Committee Athletes Commission for the next eight years.
Guiding the way was her mother and coach, Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi, who was named Coach of The Year for a second successive year after her other daughter, Noemie Fox, completed the Paris Olympics gold medal family hat-trick when successful in the women’s Kayak Cross event. Myriam is currently overseas and her award was accepted by her husband Richard Fox MBE.
The triple-title-winning Central Coast Mariners Football team denied the Penrith Panthers NRL team its third successive Team of the Year Awards, whilst Jason Stubbs (Glenwood) from Blind Sports and Recreation was voted Administrator of the Year..
The Ceremony also saw five NSW sports greats, Suzy Batkovic (Basketball), Alex Blackwell (Cricket), Murray Braund (Surf Lifesaving), Pattie Dench (Sport Pistol) and Tim Gavin (Rugby Union), inducted into the NSW Hall of Champions and Sydney Swans AFL great, Paul Kelly, was elevated to Legend status.
