Last weekend Tom collected a bronze medal by taking third place in an extremely hot field of under 15 2km beach runners.

Tom's medal was the first NSW open medal won by the club since 2013, when Gilbert Olzomer collected a bronze in the open men's 2km beach run.

The quality and depth of the field in Tom's event was highlighted by the fact that Tom and his NSW Cross Country team mate (Chris Breen of Cronulla) were in the lead pack all of the way in an enthralling event. The race was eventually won by a competitor from the strong Redhead club in Newcastle after the lead pack surged and counter surged throughout the gruelling event.

This bronze medal is Tom's first ever NSW SLS state medal and will sit with pride alongside of the national cross country gold medal and NSW schools medals won in athletics.

The Wauchope-Bonny Hills surf club member is full of potential. He also comes from good stock, Tom's medal coming 35 years since his father Peter and uncle Paul became NSW Country champions for Wauchope-Bonny Hills.

Tom, a Bonny Hills local, does most of his athletics training by himself either in the streets or on the beach at Bonny Hills or putting in gut-busting repetitions at Laurieton oval. This is in contrast to his metropolitan competitors who train in squads and race all year round.

When not training, Tom can often be seen carving up the Bonny Hills waves.

The surf club has high hopes for Tom and wishes him all the best in his quest for a national championship when he competes at the Australian Championships at North Kirra in Queensland from April 10 to 19.

This year's Australian Surf Life Saving Championships mark 100 years of national surf competition since the inaugural event conducted at Bondi in 1915, making it even more significant for every surf life saver in Australia and is sure to inspire all of our Wauchope-Bonny Hills competitors, the club says.