Max King - Australian Rules Football (AFL)
Max is currently studying a Bachelor of Commerce and is an up and coming AFL superstar at the St Kilda Saints Football Club. A goal kicking machine, Max was selected by St Kilda with pick No. 4 in the 2018 National Draft but suffered debilitating injuries in 2019. He finally made his debut for the Saints to the sounds of an empty stadium in Round 1 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Max enjoys the challenges of University and sees it as a great distraction from his life as an AFL footballer and says that "Monash's Elite Student Performer Scheme has assisted me in balancing my sport and study commitments and I'm very grateful for their help."
Jack said of his time at Monash: "When liaising with my faculty, being a member of the ESPS provided the reassurance of being associated with a legitimate university program and enabled Team Monash to advocate on my behalf if I ever had trouble reaching a positive solution. The ESPS also assisted me with international travel grants and the chance to meet like-minded students at Monash who shared similar passions."
Gabi Ash - Freestyle Aerial Skiing
Gabi is currently studying a Bachelor of Arts and is an athlete at the Olympic Winter Institute of Sport (OWIA) for freestyle aerial skiing. Starting the sport in 2016, Gabi became a contracted athlete at the OWIA by 2020. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, travelling for international competitions has been a challenge, so she has not been able to participate in all the events that were planned before the pandemic. However, she recently competed at the FIS freestyle World Cup in Deer Valley, Utah, where she made it into her first finals and finished 7th overall. She plans to go to Almaty, Kazakhstan to compete in the World Championship in March this year followed by her first World Cup circuit.
Scott England - Musical Theatre Performer and Singer Songwriter
Scott is currently studying a double degree in Science (Biochemistry) and Music (Performance). The budding performer recently appeared in Mamma Mia with CLOC Musical Theatre — one of Australia's largest and most successful non-professional music theatre companies — and is set to appear again in their mid-year show, Priscilla. But this isn't his first time in the spotlight, Scott also starred as the Tinman in the Wizard of Oz with the Young Australia Broadway Chorus in 2019 amongst numerous other shows such as The Wedding Singer.
"The Elite Student Performer Scheme has helped by allowing me the flexibility I need for performing alongside my studies. The access to sporting facilities and staff to keep fit has also helped to keep me performance ready!"
"Team Monash have been so pivotal to my success. They taught me the ins and outs of structuring my timetable, the importance of time management, offered me scholarships and introduced me to sporting mentors and fellow athletes. But most of all, they instilled confidence in me to pursue my aspirations."
Monash University and The University of Melbourne fought it out once again in the second Big Blue Varsity Challenge event of the year!
Table Tennis Olympian and Monash alumni, Heming Hu has announced his retirement.