Sophy Porter

Position:  Sports Dietitian at: The Fremantle Football Club (AFL), The Emirates Western Force (ARU), The Western Warriors (Cricket) , Rugby WA Academy and National Talent Squad (ARU), Tennis WA, East Fremantle Football Club (WAFL) and East Perth Football Club (WAFL)

Lives: Perth WA

Favourite food: All foods with spice! Love Asian flavours; chilli, lemongrass, basil etc.

Favourite sport: I’ll watch any sport and enjoy it, but mainly AFL, rugby union gymnastics, and snowboarding.

Tell us about yourself. How did you become a sports dietitian?  I am originally from the UK and have been settled in Australia for eight years now.  I've always been interested in sports – both participating and as a spectator.  I gained most of my experience in sports nutrition when I shadowed sports dietitian Dr Helen O'Connor in Sydney in 2001.  Helen was a real inspiration and she motivated me to pursue my interest in the area.

What other areas of dietetics are you interested in?  Paediatrics and community - I really think that education at an early age is a great way to help prevent many nutrition related illnesses and increase awareness of healthy eating.

Why did you become involved with SDA? I first became involved with SDA in 2001 when I attended the meetings in NSW as a student. The meetings give you a great opportunity to network with other sports dietitians and keep up to date with new topics of interest.

What do you see are some of the major issues for SDA over the next 5 years?  Promoting and encouraging member support.

Do you participate in any sport yourself? Not competitively but I am an active person and enjoy social sport i.e. tennis, swimming and gym classes.

Which sportsperson (or team) do you admire the most and why?  Sportsperson - Lance Armstrong - he's an absolute legend. To overcome his battle with cancer and win the Tour de France so many times is truly amazing - what an inspiration!

Updated March 2010