Winners have been announced for the Victorian Sport Awards (VSAs), honouring the Victorian sport and active recreation industry for achievements made during the 2025 calendar year.
Presented by the Victorian Government and Vicsport on Wednesday 13 May in the Members Dining Room at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, 19 awards were presented that span individual and team athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers, administrators, media personnel and the initiatives that promoted participation.
Following nominations from State Sporting Associations as well as teammates, club members, friends, family and the general public, an esteemed panel of 35 highly qualified Victorian sports people were charged with selecting both the finalists and winners.
The most prestigious honour bestowed on the night, the Outstanding Contribution to Victorian Sport Award is a lifetime achievement award and presented to an individual in recognition of outstanding achievement in, or contribution to, sport in Victoria. The 2025 recipient was VIS athlete alumnus, Sharelle McMahon.
One of Australia’s most successful, durable and fierce netballers, McMahon won two World Championships, two Commonwealth Games gold medals and six Australian netball Championships across a 16-year playing career.
Playing as goal attack or goal shooter, McMahon etched her name into netball folklore at the 1999 World Championships, hitting the game-winning shot on the siren in the final against New Zealand to secure Australia’s third consecutive title.
She was the heroine again at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games, sinking the game winner in sudden death to once again beat New Zealand and claim gold. At the 2010 Commonwealth Games, McMahon created history as Australia’s first team player to be named flag-bearer for the Opening Ceremony.
Overall, her international career included two World Championship gold medals and one silver as well as two gold and two silver Commonwealth Games medals. She captained the team on twelve occasions, scored 2,520 goals and finished as the second most-capped Australian player with 118 games.
McMahon’s domestic career started in similar fashion to her international career, winning a Premiership with the Melbourne Phoenix in her debut season. Between 1997-2007, she captained the Phoenix for four seasons, leading them to win five Premierships whilst also claiming four MVP Awards. In 2007, McMahon was named the Melbourne Vixens’ inaugural captain. She led them to the Championship in 2009 and won the Grand Final MVP while also winning back-to-back club MVP’s in 2009 and 2010, an award which is now named in her honour.
McMahon’s achievements have not ended after retirement, becoming the first netballer and just the third female athlete in Melbourne to be immortalised in bronze when her statue was unveiled in 2023 at John Cain Arena.
VIS scholarship athlete, Tara Neyland, claimed the Kitty McEwan Award. An award recognising a Victorian individual athlete who has achieved outstanding results in respect to performance/s at a national/international level in the female category during the 2025 year.
Neyland was diagnosed in 2023 with a progressive neuromuscular condition that causes muscle weakness and loss. After her first year as a classified Para athlete, Neyland excelled at a National and International level.
At the Road National Championships in Perth, she won gold in the Road Race and Individual Time Trial. At the Track National Championships in Brisbane, she won gold in the Scratch Race and 1000m Time Trial, setting a new Australian Record.
Debuting internationally at the Para Cycling World Championships in Belgium, she took home two titles in the Road Race and Individual Time Trial. She then went on to clinch three more World Championships on the track in Rio, in the 1km Time Trial, Scratch and Elimination races, alongside setting a new World Record in the C4 1000m Time Trial.
The Young Athlete of the Year Award went to VIS scholarship Para triathlete, Jack Howell.
Coming off a year in which he competed at his first Paralympics, Howell was the winner at two 2025 World Triathlon Para Series events in Devonport and Italy.
He also won silver at the World Series in Japan by just one second in a sprint finish. He crushed the competition in his home country, bringing home the gold three minutes quicker than his nearest rival. He then stood on the podium again at the World Championships in Wollongong where he finished runner-up to the Paris Paralympic gold medallist by only 28 seconds.
Those results placed him number one in the world in Paratriathlon PTS5 by the end of the year.
VicSport CEO Elyse Jenkins says:
“The Victorian Sport Awards are a special night as it gives us a chance to recognise and celebrate Victoria’s grassroots heroes alongside those who excelled at an elite level.
“My congratulations to everyone who was honoured this year including Sharelle McMahon, a legend of Victorian sport who has continued to give back to our industry beyond retirement through administrative roles at Cricket Victoria and Netball Victoria.”
Minister for Community Sport Ros Spence says:
“2025 was a year of outstanding sporting achievements for our athletes, coaches, officials and volunteers. They deserve this moment in the spotlight.”
“Congratulations to all our sporting icons honoured here tonight, especially to Sharelle McMahon, one of our state’s greatest homegrown netball talents, helping to pave the way for the next generation of Victorian sport stars.”
Discover all the award winners from the Victorian Sport Awards here.
Credit: VicSport
