UPDATE: How Monash athletes are performing in Beijing Olympics

Brenton Rickard (BSc 2006) won silver in the 200m breaststroke final on Thursday, 14 August.

Former Monash student Patrick Murphy won bronze in the 4x200m freestyle on Wednesday, 13 August.

Monash athletes aim for gold in Beijing

Thirteen elite athletes from Monash have achieved their dreams of competing in Beijing.

Swimming champion Brenton Rickard, former member of the Monash University Swim Club and Science graduate, has qualified for the Olympics in the 100m and 200m breaststroke.

Arts graduate Catriona Sens will compete for Australia in the double scull rowing and Computing graduate and Commonwealth Games gold medallist Travis Brooks is in the men's hockey team.

Fifth-year medical student David Zalcberg qualified for the men's singles and team table tennis, Peninsula campus fitness centre member Erin Densham is in the women's triathlon and second-year law student Catherine Arlove is lining up for her third and final tilt at Olympic gold in Judo.

Doug Ellis Swimming Pool staff member Daniel Lee will compete for the Sri Lankan Olympic swimming team and Biomedical Science student Liying Toh is in the Singaporean team for sailing.

Former Monash students Tania Luiz, Eugenie Tanaka and Karen Foo-Kune (Mauritius) are also competing in badminton at the Beijing Olympics and Patrick Murphy is in the 100m and 200m freestyle relays.

Arlove, who is one of nearly 100 athletes receiving an Elite Athlete Support bursary, said there were often difficulties of combining a professional sporting career with a law degree.

“A Bachelor of Law is time intensive but the Olympics stop for no one. I have to do 20 to 30 hours a week of physical training and the hardest part is getting enough sleep so you’re performing at your best potential,” she said.

Arlove is assisted by Monash Sport’s elite athlete support program, which offers a range of free services to help manage such challenges.

“They have a comprehensive array of services so when I need recovery I have pool, spa, sauna and full gym. Having it locally really helps and the long opening hours is good for my busy lifestyle.”

Peninsula campus fitness centre member Charlotte Saville will compete in the 200m and javelin at the Beijing Paralympics in September.

First-year Arts/Science student Jessica Walters was unlucky to miss selection for the archery team after being picked in the shadow Olympic squad.

The medical team travelling to Beijing to oversee the health of the Australian team also includes Monash alumni. Of the team’s five senior doctors, three are Monash alumni. Head of the medical team, Dr Peter Baquie (GradDipOccEnvH 1994) is joined by alumnae Drs Susan L White (MBBS(Hons) 1989) and Karen Holzer (MBBS 1992, PhD 2005). Dr White is the head swimming team doctor, while Dr Holzer is an expert in asthma in sportspeople and has helped to prepare the team for problems due to Beijing’s pollution.

For information on events happening at Monash Sport during the Olympics, visit: http://sport.monash.edu.au/promotion/olympic-spirit.html

Catherine Arlove practising for the Olympics

Travis Brooks (left)

Daniel Lee is competing for Sri Lanka