Melbourne, Victoria, 22 July 2024 | Rhys de Deugd
The third annual BLV (Blind and Low Vision) National Championships took place in Melbourne over the weekend with record-breaking attendance from across the country.
The event, which featured 50 athletes, including 32 from interstate, was the largest draw in the competition’s history and the first time B2-4 categories hosted split-gender draws in singles and doubles.
In another tournament-first, a B1 division was added for athletes competing with no light perception in their vision.
Western Australia’s Ben Rowe was crowned the inaugural B1 singles champion after performing a stunning acoustic rendition of the national anthem at the tournament’s opening ceremony.
July 21: Inaugural B1 singles national champion Ben Rowe at the 2024 National Blind and Low Vision Championships at the National Tennis Centre in Melbourne. Photo by TENNIS AUSTRALIA/ HAMISH BLAIR
| Australian Blind and Low Vision Championships 2024 | ||
| Event | Champion | Runner-up |
| Division 1 junior singles |
Arato Katsuda-Green (NSW) | Ethan Cook (SA) |
| Division 2 junior singles | Matthew Divito (SA) | Leah Glassenbury (SA) |
| B1 open singles | Ben Rowe (WA) | Isaiah Muller (SA) |
| B2 men’s singles | Ethan Cook (SA) | Oliver Fanshawe (QLD) |
| B2-3 women’s singles | Caroline Lane (VIC) | Courtney Webeck (NSW) |
| B3 men’s singles | Michael Leigh (NSW) | Reuben Fairbank (SA) |
| B4 women’s singles | Grace Hobbs (NSW) | Madison Kelly (Vic) |
| B4 men’s singles | Ross Patterson (Vic) | Arato Katsuda-Green (NSW) |
| B1 open doubles | Isabella Allen (QLD)/ Tess Whelan(Vic) | Arthur Pirika(WA) /Nicole Muir (WA) |
| B2 men’s doubles | Ethan Cook (SA)/Oliver Fanshawe (QLD) | Ned Brewer-Maiga(Vic)/Scott Dann(QLD) |
| B2-4 women’s doubles | Courtney Webeck(NSW)/Grace Hobbs (NSW) | Phoebe David(Vic)/Caroline Lane(Vic) |
| B3-4 men’s doubles | Michael Leigh (NSW)/Ross Patterson(Vic) | Arato Katsuda-Green (NSW)/Sean Russo (NSW) |
> VIEW: Full results from the 2024 Australian Blind and Low Vision Championships
New South Wales claimed bragging rights as the top-performing state/territory in the singles competitions and was awarded the Maurice Gleeson Cup for the second-consecutive year.
The cup honours the huge contribution Maurice Gleeson OAM made to blind tennis over many years and is awarded to the state/territory that performs the best across all singles events. All players earn points towards their state/territory team total based on their final placings and team size.
This year’s event also featured 16 players who are set to compete on the world stage at the IBTA World Championships in Italy from the 24-28 September.
The tournament was live-streamed each day with commentary on Tennis Australia’s YouTube channel.
Find your way to play: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!
