SPORTS STAR OF THE YEAR 2026 - JUNIOR
Our highest accolade, the Sports Star of the Year award honours the most outstanding achievements by an athlete in sport and beyond sporting performances. This award recognises the Sunshine Coast area's most outstanding sportsperson. The recipient will be selected from all finalists across the other Athlete of the Year categories. The Junior Sports Star of the Year will be awarded to an athlete under 18 and the Senior Sports Star of the Year will be awarded to an athlete aged 18 and over.
Who is eligible
To be eligible for an Athlete of the Year Awards, nominees must be:
- A permanent resident, both during and outside of competition periods, of the Sunshine Coast or Noosa local government areas; or
- Represent or be a life member of a sporting club/ association or participate in a recognised high performance pathway that's aligned to a sports governing body and is based on the Sunshine Coast or Noosa local government areas; or
- Have lived/ trained/ competed as a Junior in the Sunshine Coast or Noosa local government areas and moved away to attend tertiary education, to participate in a recognised high performance pathway aligned to a sport governing body or compete in elite level competition.
- Satisfy one of the above criteria for at least 75% of the time leading up to the sporting achievement assessed as part of the Annual Award years they have nominated.
How this award is decided
There is no separate nomination for this award. The panel selects the recipient from the finalists of the other categories.
Enter the category that fits the nominee and they will be considered here as well.
KEY DATES
Awards period: 1 September 2025 to 31 August 2026
Nominations close: 30 October 2026
Awards night: 5pm, Thursday 3 December 2026, UniSC Innovation Centre Auditorium
