Columba College congratulates Year 9 student Amelia Loudon for her recent Otago/Southland Surf Lifesaving NZ Award of Excellence. This is a fantastic accolade, and one that Amelia should be extremely proud of.

Due to a disrupted COVID-19 season, the Surf Lifesaving awards of excellence are only just being released, and this achievement acknowledges Amelia's commitment and performance in Surf Lifesaving events over the 2019 - 2020 season. Amelia competed last season in her local inter club competition, as well as the Otago, South Island and National championships in Surf life saving for her club St Kilda. The U14 Top Female Competitor award reflects Amelia's achievements in her age group in the Otago/Southland region. The region consists of 6 clubs: St. Kilda, St. Clair, Warrington, Brighton, Kaka Point and Oreti. 

While Amelia was in the U13 age group last season, the Otago/Southland region has U13 & U14 athletes competing together and Amelia managed to beat a strong U14 competitor from St Clair to win the title by one point. Events consist of 400m surf swims, SLSNZ rescue board races, combination (swim & board) races, as well as beach running events. This year will be Amelia's last year competing as a junior, and she will become a fully fledged life guard on her birthday in December.

Congratulations, Amelia! What a great sport to be involved in. We are super impressed with your dedication and commitment to Surf Lifesaving, and are extremely proud of your recent award. Not only are you achieving fantastic results, you are soon to be serving the community in your role as a fully fledged Life Guard. Well done!