Region’s best shine far from or near home

WHETHER it was far from or near home, Bendigo’s sporting stars excelled on many arenas, courts, courses, ovals and more across the past year.

The best of 2025 will mingle with the greats of yesteryear when the 60th Bendigo Sports Star of the Year awards are presented on 27 February.

The diamond jubilee of the awards will be celebrated on a night dubbed Glitter and Gold at Bendigo’s All Seasons.

Several of the finalists in 2025 are not newcomers to Sports Star.

Gun cyclists Blake Agnoletto and Alessia McCaig have added to their tally of silver statuettes.

A brilliant year for Agnoletto began with victory in the Melbourne to Warrnambool road race and was capped with silver in the teams pursuit at the UCI world track championships in Chile.

McCaig also raced on the Santiago boards in Chile where she earnt bronze for a second team in the elite women’s sprint.

Among the highs of her year was gold in the sprint and keirin finals at Cycling Australia’s track nationals in March.

It was in March when Bendigo Spirit celebrated its third Women’s National Basketball League championship victory.

Spirit went two-nil in the grand final series against Townsville Fire.

The Daniels brothers, Dyson and Dash, were in superb form on the basketball court.

Dyson’s first season with Atlanta Hawks was capped with the NBA’s Most Improved Player award, and he runner-up for the Defensive Player of the Year award.

The Australian Boomers team that won the Asia Cup included 17-year-old Dash Daniels, who played a key role for Australia at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Switzerland.

Bendigo’s Sports Star of the Year across 2020 and ’21, Lucas Herbert was to the fore on fairways and greens on golf courses around the world.

In June, Herbert scored 20-under to win the International Series in Japan.

He was 15th overall as he represented Ripper on the LIV Golf circuit.

The fastest marathon runner in Australia’s history, Andy Buchanan, won the half-marathon at the Gold Coast Marathon Festival in July.

 

Injury meant Buchanan was a late scratching for the marathon at the world field and track championships run in Tokyo.

Superb play by goalkeeper Charlotte Sexton was pivotal in Australia again being number one at the World Netball Youth Cup in Gibraltar. Earlier in the year, Sexton earned the fairest and best award for Bendigo Strikers as the team reached the Victorian Netball League finals.

Hundreds of hours spent in the gym or in the water was capped by the success of bodybuilder James Hume and swimmer Henry Allan in June.

Hume was crowned Pro Mr Oceania in men’s physique at the NBA Pro League in Sydney.

The natural bodybuilder is a multiple Mr Australia titleholder.

In the pool, Allan won five gold medals and broke two records at the Australian Age Championships in Brisbane.

Bendigo East’s young gun dominated in backstroke where a high was a time of 53.73 in the 100m final.

And on the boxing front, Tommy Fitzgerald retained his Australian lightweight title to have an eight-nil record in pro ranks.