ARI recognises aquatic facility excellence in NSW

The Aquatic and Recreation Institute (ARI) has recognised industry excellence in NSW at its 2019 Awards, presented during its recent 55th Annual Conference.

As explained by ARI “the annual Awards of excellence demonstrated once again the high calibre of excellence in our industry with a record number of nominations received.

“Congratulations to all nominees, and especially to our 2019 Winners in the following categories”:

• ARI President’s Award - Andrew Beamer, Leichardt Leisure Centre
• Orimatech Award of Excellence - Mathew Griffiths, Royal Life Saving - NSW
• RLS Lifeguard of the Year - Michael Slee, Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre
• ARI Mentor Team Winners - Aquatic Safety Training Academy
• Roejen Customer Service Team of the Year - Auburn Ruth Everess Aquatic Centre
• Roejen Environmental Sustainability Award - Tweed Regional Aquatic Centres
• IQ/Pierce Pools Facility of the Year - Prairiewood Leisure Centre, Fairfield City Council

In addition, Tim Batt of Tim Batt Water Solutions was named a Honorary Fellow of the Institute, recognising 37 years of service to the industry and continous support and sponsorship of the ARI.

Held at Peppers Craigieburn in the NSW Southern Highlands, the conference theme was Creating Value in Aquatic and Recreation Facilities.

ARI Executive Officer Louise Magee explained “as managers, we know our most valuable asset in our organisation is our people. This year our speakers engaged our audience in a variety of topics that provided both knowledge around emerging trends in our industry. Our keynotes speakers were all about our people and had a huge impact on our audience.

“To say they were inspirational would be a huge understatement.”

Speakers included Kurt Fearnley - three-time Paralympic Gold medallist and two time Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist who, Magee advised “had everyone on the edge of their seats as he recounted his many achievements throughout his sporting career and perhaps the most inspiring was his enduring the relentless Kokoda Trail.

“Kurt has been heavily involved in the planning of events such as last year’s Commonwealth Games to ensure these events are inclusive to all athletes (and) it’s fair to say the more people like Kurt that are involved in the conversations around planning inclusive events, they will continue to evolve and be a welcome space for all.”

Commenting on keynote Jen Harwood, Magee advised “’the Jenerator’ delivered a two-part session over the two days.

“The first session on The Art of Networking demonstrated some fantastic insights to human behaviour, conversation and social skills (and) it was great to see the delegates then put their new-found skills into action at the function that evening.

“Jen’s second session showed our audience how to build their personal support network to keep them mentally and emotionally strong and balanced, so they’re calm and collected no matter what situations and circumstances they face.

“Our final keynote, James Castrission took us on a wild journey, recounting his adventure with mate ‘Jonesy’ kayaking from Australia to New Zealand and then trekking and incredible 2220 kilometres across Antarctica to the South Pole and back over 90 days.”

The conference also saw the presentation of awards in the ARI’s Mentor Program, following which Principal Partners Jonas Leisure announced their continued support of the ARI Mentor Program for 2020.

The ARI will be seeking nominations for both Mentors and Mentor Teams in the coming weeks, with details to be available on the ARI website.

ARI Pool Safety Summit
ARI’s next event is its Pool Safety Summit being held in Tweed Heads on 29th and 30th August, which will see a collaboration with Royal Life Saving Society – Australia’s NSW and Queensland branches to engage audiences from both states.

The Program and registration details will be available on the ARI website in the coming weeks.For further information on all ARI events and initiatives, visit the ARI website at www.arinsw.com.au

Click here for information in the Australasian Leisure Management industry Calendar.

Images: ARI Award Winners (top) and David Burns of the Auburn Ruth Everess Aquatic Centre with the Roejen Customer Service Team of the Year 2019 Award (below).