Ash Barty picks up prestigious Aussie honour after glittering season

Ash Barty has capped off her incredible year in the tennis arena with a homegrown honour.

The World No.1 tennis gun claimed Queensland’s Young Australian of the Year award after her success and work on and off the court.

‘HEARTBREAKING’: Aussies devastated in Fed Cup thriller

Winner of the French Open, Barty continued her inspired form and finished the year as World No.1.

Barty’s rise to the summit of women's tennis saw her become only the second Australian WTA singles No. 1 after Evonne Goolagong Cawley.

A First Nations woman, Ash also served as the National Indigenous Tennis Ambassador for Tennis Australia.

Alongside her, Rachel Downie took out the Queensland Australian of the Year.

Twenty-five years ago, Rachel Downie became an educator to help young people but after a Year 9 student took their own life she developed and funded Stymie, a site where students can anonymously report harm without fear.

Implemented nationally and internationally, students can use Stymie to report family violence bullying, cyber-bullying, depression, illegal activity, harassment and self-harm.

In 2018, Stymie schools received more than 40,000 notifications from concerned students through the site.

Queensland's Senior Australian of the Year is Peter Dornan AM for his work on prostate cancer.

The 2020 Local Hero is Adjunct Assistant Professor Nick Marshall who created the Albatross Nippers – a program helping children with special needs experience nippers.

The Queensland recipients will join those from the other states and territories for the national awards ceremony at the National Arboretum in Canberra in January 2020 – the 60th anniversary of the awards.