A recent decision by the Queensland Girls’ Secondary Schools Sports Association has altered the landscape for girls participating in sports competitions under the banner of St Peters Lutheran College Springfield.
Despite efforts to reverse the school’s membership to the Queensland Girls’ Secondary Schools Sports Association (QGSSSA), St Peters Lutheran College Springfield. will no longer be recognised as a member starting from 2026.
This change will impact the school’s participation in the competition under the broader St Peters banner.
Tim Kotzur, the Head of College of St Peters Lutheran College, confirmed this decision in an email sent to the St Peters community. Mr Kotzur did not elaborate on the reason for the decision.
Photo Credit: St Peters Springfield
Whilst this brings disappointment, it also heralds a period of reflection and strategic planning for the Springfield campus.
Administrators, teachers, and students alike are exploring alternatives to ensure that the girls of St Peters Lutheran College Springfield can continue to engage in quality sporting activities beyond 2025. This exploration includes assessing options for participation in other school sports associations or leagues, as well as potentially developing inter-school competitions within the local community.
Amidst this transition, St Peters Lutheran College Springfield remains committed to providing a holistic education that encompasses academic excellence and opportunities for physical development and teamwork through sports. The Leadership Team is diligently working to mitigate disruptions and ensure a seamless transition for students, parents, and coaches involved in the sporting programs.
Olympic triple medallist Mollie O’Callaghan continued her winning streak as she led St Peters Lutheran College Springfield to an exciting ninth successive Swimming Championship at the QGSSSA held at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre, Chandler.
On 16 March 2022, St Peters Lutheran College joined Brisbane State High School as QGSSSA’s record holder of nine consecutive Mollie Gould Cup titles.
St Peters’ swim team broke individual records courtesy of O’Callaghan (50m freestyle, 25.69), Ainsley Trotter (15 years 50m backstroke, 29.74) and Isabella Morris (14 years 50m freestyle, 27.81). Annika Silvester (12 years, 50m butterfly, 30.31) of Brisbane State High School also broke an individual record that night.
Meanwhile, the Saints’ 15 Years B Division Team (1:56.26) composed of Gemma Glen, Chloe Cholet, Gabrielle Frisbee and Josephine Illing and 14 Years A Division team (1:53.31) of Kaci Curtis, Isabella Morris, Alexa S and Abby George also broke relay records.
Photo Credit: David Martin: Ipswich / Facebook
St Peters started strong with Jamie Perkins winning the first individual event of the night, the 200m open freestyle. Ella Ramsay and Mollie O’Callaghan followed suit in the 100m breaststroke and the 100m backstroke, respectively.
All in all, Mollie O’Callaghan finished on top in the 100m backstrokes, 50m freestyle and 100m freestyle, and was part of the Saint’s winning team in the 200m freestyle relay and 200m freestyle relay.
Mollie O’Callaghan OAM finished the 2020 Summer Olympics with two gold medals (4×100 medley relay and the freestyle relay as a heat swimmer) and one bronze medal (as part of the 4×200m relay team).
Before her spectacular Olympic performance in Tokyo, she also beat training partner and fellow Olympic champ and club mate, Ariarne Titmus, in Queensland’s swimming championships. O’Callaghan clocked 1:56.51 to win the 200m freestyle.
St Peters Lutheran College Springfield’s pride, Olympian Mollie O’Callaghan, is set to make waves once more as she headlines the 2022 QGSSSA Swimming Championships.
Fresh from her successful Tokyo Olympics stint, O’Callaghan will be competing for the Mollie Gould Cup on the 16th of March 2022 at the Brisbane Aquatic Centre. Joining her in the Saints’ elite girls swimming squad are Ainsley Trotter, Amelia Weber, Ella Ramsay, Jaclyn Barclay, Jamie Perkins, and Semra Olowniyi.
O’Callaghan was recently awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) on Australia Day in recognition of her two gold medals and one bronze finish at the 2020 Summer Olympics; she was the youngest member of the Australian swimming team.
O’Callaghan bagged the gold medal in the 4×100 medley relay and the freestyle relay as a heat swimmer and was also part of the 4×200-m relay team that took home the bronze medal. She also broke the world junior record in the 200m freestyle.
Photo Credit: St Peters Lutheran College Springfield / Facebook
But whilst the odds are in favour of St Peters Lutheran College given their formidable lineup, other stellar athletes and rising stars including the likes of Tribeca Liu of St Hilda’s, Brisbane State High School’s Hannah Allen and St Margaret’s Sophie Martin are sure to give the Saints some fierce competition.
The 87th Annual Swimming Championships will also feature for the first time, four open multi-class events for swimmers with a disability. The four events are the Open 50-m Freestyle Multiclass, Open 50-m Breaststroke Multiclass, Open 50-m Butterfly Multiclass, and Open 100-m Freestyle Multiclass.
The 2022 QGSSSA Swimming Championships will be streamed live via Clutch. Triple Australian Olympian and St Margaret’s Anglican Girls School Alumni, Bronte Barratt, will be co-commenting with Joel Murray this year’s live stream production.
Team Australia captured their first two medals on the first night of the 2019 World Junior Swimming Championships, which had more than 800 swimmers from 122 nations seeing action at the Duna Arena in Budapest.
Thomas Neil snared silver medal in the Men’s 400m Freestyle with a personal best time of 3:46.27. Whilst the Women’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay saw the team of Lani Pallister (1.58.61), Michaela Ryan (1.59.11), Rebecca Jacobson (2.00.71), and Jenna Forrester (1.59.44) finishing second behind USA.
Our Fina World Junior Championship 4×200 Freestyle 🥈 medalists!#TeamSPW ⚫⚪🔴
The Aussies claimed their first gold of the meet, courtesy of Lani Pallister, after she powered her way through in the Women’s 800m Freestyle, whilst Mollie O’Callaghan clocked 1:00.27, beating her personal best recorded the night before, to finish fourth in the Women’s 100m Backstroke.
The third night of the competition saw Australia bagging back-to-back bronze medals. St Peters Western Swim Club‘s Meg Harris took home the bronze in the 100m Freestyle final after a heart-stopping finish of 54.58. USA’s Gretchen Walsh (53.74) and Torri Huske (54.54), took first and second place, respectively. Thomas Neil contributed another bronze to the Australian medal haul, finishing third place in the Men’s 800m Freestyle
Lani Pallister secured another gold medal for Australia in the Women’s 400m Freestyle, on night four of the championship meet. Cotton Tree’s Pallister swam to a new personal best and a new championship record, timing 4:05.42. Australia also took the bronze in the Men’s 4x200m freestyle relay that night.
By the fifth night, Australia had already amassed four gold, three silver, and three bronze medals, thanks to the back-to-back junior world titles of Bronte Job and Lani Pallister. Job struck gold in the Women’s 50m Backstroke in 27.87.
Proving that she is in it to win it, Lani Pallister continued to shine with another sterling performance by breaking the 16-minute barrier in the Women’s 1500m Freestyle clocking 15.58.86 — a new personal best and championship record by the 17-year-old. The Women’s 4x100m Freestyle team of O’Callaghan, Harris, Pallister, and Jacobson captured the silver medal behind the USA.
Some action shots of our #TeamSPW crew competing at the 2019 Fina World Junior Championships in Budapest.🇭🇺We have had…
Capping off a massively successful showing, Lani Pallister was named “Female Swimmer of the Meet” on the final night, after making another trip to the podium to wear her Women’s 200m Freestyle silver medal.
Thomas Neill also claimed another silver medal for the Australian junior swimming team via Men’s 1500m Freestyle Relay with a new personal best of 14:59.19.
Rounding off the successful Aussie championship campaign was Meg Harris bronze finish in the Women’s 50m Freestyle “splash n dash” with a personal best time of 24.89 seconds.
All told, Australia took home four gold medals, five silver, and four bronze with the USA leading the medal tally board with 37 medals (18 gold, 10 silver, and nine bronze). Russia had 22 (seven gold, 11 silver, and four bronze), Italy with 12 (3 gold, 2 silver, and 7 bronze), and Canada with 12 (2 gold, 5 silver, and 5 bronze)
