The Pho3nix Foundation is proud to send off a roster of seven athletes qualified to represent their respective nations at the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris.
A sport nonprofit with the aim to encourage and inspire children to stay healthy and active by engaging in sport and physical activity, the Pho3nix Foundation supports elite athletes through the Pho3nix Team and Pho3nix Athlete Program.
Pho3nix Team members Georgia Taylor-Brown and Kate Waugh were selected for the Great Britain triathlon squad and will be racing the individual and mixed relay medal events. Two-time world champion Taylor-Brown made her Olympic debut in Tokyo 2020 where she salvaged a flat tire to win an individual silver medal, and figured in the penultimate mixed relay leg to propel Great Britain to a team gold.
Waugh, a U23 and mixed relay world champion, will be debuting in Paris after stellar performances in the lead-up to selection including podium finishes at World Triathlon Grand Finals and seventh place at the Paris Olympic Test Event. She says, “I have achieved more throughout this process than I could have imagined and have learned about just how much you can achieve when you put your mind to something.”
The Pho3nix Junior Team supports promising athletes aged 16 to 20 years old, bridging the gap between junior competition and professional success. From this roster, Australian hurdler Tayleb Willis has been selected onto Team Australia. The five-time national junior champion became Oceania champion and also set the third-fastest Australian time in the 110m hurdles this year.
“This is a dream come true. To represent Australia at the Olympic Games has been my biggest dream since I was a kid. The support that the Pho3nix Foundation has provided me from the Pho3nix Future Camp in 2022 to being a part of the Junior Team in 2024 has helped me turn my dream into a reality,” says Willis.
The Pho3nix Athlete Program aims to give assistance to underfunded athletes in their pursuit of Olympic qualification. Out of 10 athletes in the Paris 2024 intake, four have qualified to compete on the world’s biggest sporting stage.
Jamie Riddle will represent South Africa, fulfilling the goal his 12-year-old self set 12 years ago. He overcame injury in the latter half of 2023 to come back this year and rank high enough in the Olympic qualification standings to qualify a spot for his nation, as well as win the South Africa championship.
Fellow South African Miyanda Maseti is also headed to Paris. As the only woman representing the African continent as an elite BMX rider, the five-time South Africa champion made full use of Pho3nix’s support to train at better facilities in Europe to develop even further to line up among the best in the world.
Jenjira Stadelmann is Switzerland’s top-ranked badminton player and has been selected for its Paris-bound squad – eight years after she first arrived in the nation not being able to speak its language, but ultimately finding her place through sport.
Lastly but not least, Australia’s Alexa Leary has qualified for her first Paralympic Games to compete in the 50m and 100m Freestyle S9, only three years after the life-changing accident that obliterated her short-term memory and left her with permanent weakness on her right side. Sport and swimming have not only given purpose to her recovery, but also have taken her closer to a lifelong goal.
As the countdown clock ticks toward the Paris 2024 kick-off, look to these athletes to continue exemplifying the Pho3nix ethos: rising above circumstance to reach for their dreams and inspire the next generation. The Pho3nix Foundation is honoured to partner with them on their journey.