Backstroke of genius

Thursday 5 April: mark it in your diary. That’s the day Bradley Woodward is set to make a splash in his first event at his year’s Commonwealth Games.

He’s one of a handful of UTS students going for gold at the Games. And will be competing in the 100m and 200m backstroke events. 

“I was pretty excited when I made the team; it actually took a little while to sink in,” confesses Brad. “I was also quite relieved as I had a good chance of making it but I wasn’t 100 per cent confident.”

The games are held from 4th to 15th April and during this time period; Brad will have quite a full schedule, juggling both training, studying and competing.

His training routine in the lead up to the Games includes nine swim sessions, attending three gym work outs and also going to pilates twice over just seven days.

Brad is undertaking a Bachelor of Construction Project Management here at UTS, which is a four-year full-time degree. “UTS has been great with working out how I can still get my work done whilst I am on the Gold Coast. It has taken a lot of coordination with staff especially regarding lectures.”

When to watch all the UTS athletes at the 2018 Commonwealth Games

Despite his hectic schedule, Brad, who is originally from the Central Coast, is still looking forward to his university experience.

“The course is something a bit different to what I have done in the past, and I expect it will be a bit of a challenge.”

One of Brad’s major inspirations is Ky Hurst, an Australian swimmer and ironman, who has won numerous awards, and even placed 11th for 10km marathon swimming, in the 2008 Summer Olympics.

At just 19 years old, Brad plans to continue swimming after the games, and jumps right back into training straight away. Brad’s personal best in the 100m is 54.24 seconds and in the 200m 1 minute, 57 seconds both of which he is always aiming to improve.

Brad has been swimming competitively since the age of eight, and this year’s achievements are a current summation of his swimming career.

This Commonwealth Games is the largest sporting event to be held in Australia this decade and also includes the largest integrated sports program that has been seen in all of Commonwealth Games history.

Lexy Akillas
Bachelor of Arts in Communication (Journalism)

Find out more about our UTS athletes competing at the Commonwealth Games with this handy guide.