Queensland Representative School Sport is proud of our people. From students to teachers to referees and umpires as well as volunteers it takes a community to lead our program.
QRSS is proud to highlight the journeys of some of our people to showcase the positive impact our representative school sport program has on individuals in their own way.
Deanna Turner grew up in Mirani, in QRSS’ Central Queensland region, playing netball. She represented her school and the small town of Mirani, outside of Mackay in multiple sports. She participated in state and national netball championships and went on to play for the Queensland Firebirds. A few of her friends asked her to try rugby league where she went on to play for her state and nation as well. Sport has provided her with plenty of opportunities to grow as an athlete, person and now coach. She is currently the QRSS 18 years girls Queensland coach and invests her time for students providing them with a genuine pathway to access various sports.
Alexa Leary was a promising triathlete. She competed in a wide range of sports which ultimately helped her concentrate in the classroom. She went onto compete for Queensland at the School Sport Australia National Championships in triathlon and in year 12 was selected to compete for Australia on the international stage.
Unfortunately, whilst training, she was involved in a horrific accident. She was told she would never walk or talk again, let alone compete in sport. Recently, after 2 years of rehabilitation, she competed on the international stage again as a para swimmer in the S9 category. Alexa has one of Australia’s worst cases of traumatic brain injury and faces uphill battles every day, where she draws on the skills QRSS gave her, to continue pursuing her Olympic dream. She was recently awarded the 2023 AIS Discovery Athlete of the Year.
Jaspa Fletcher is a current Brisbane Lions grand finalist, who made his debut in 2023. He is a product of the Queensland academy pathway having also come through the Queensland Representative School Sport program as a junior. Competing at QRSS district, regional, state and national championships Jaspa had an outstanding 2022 campaign at under-18 level. This resulted in him being selected by the Brisbane Lions via its academy with pick 12 at the 2022 NAB AFL Draft.