Motorcycle racing star Casey Stoner, and his wife Adriana, welcomed their first child yesterday. Their daughter Alessandra Maria was born late in the evening on February 16, weighing 2.8 kg (a bit over 6 pounds). Alessandra Stoner was born on the birthday of Italian multiple MotoGP champion, Valentino Rossi.

Casey learned to ride a motorcycle as a toddler, and has been competing since he was four years old. At the age of 14 he moved to England, because they allow professional competing two years younger than in Australia. He has won the MotoGP twice, including last year, and in the past six seasons, is the only rider to win more MotoGP races than seven-time champion Valentino Rossi, out-gunning the Italian great 33 wins to 26.

Adriana (nee Tuchyna) is from Adelaide and is the daughter of a motorcycle racer. She first met Casey in 2003, when she asked him to sign her stomach. They began a relationship two years later, after she had turned 16. Casey and Adriana were married in January 2007, and Casey has said publicly that marriage has made him calmer and a better racer. The Stoners are currently based in Switzerland.

Jesse is the daughter of beauty salon owner Charmyne Palavi, who became notorious as the “NRL Cougar” for dating a number of high-profile NRL players. Now 17, Jesse and her boyfriend, security guard Jeremy Vyner, have welcomed their first child, a son named Xavier.

Charmyne says she has not quite realised she is a grandmother yet, as people usually assume Xavier is her own baby, and she takes care of him a lot of the time. Last year, Charmyne lost a baby that an Indian surrogate mother was carrying for her and her young husband, which led to the breakdown of her brief marriage. Charmyne is now dating again.

(Story and photo from Woman’s Day, February 13 2012)

Darwin jockey Phillip Crich, and his partner Jodie, welcomed their second child on February 8 – a daughter named Alison.

That same week, Phillip rode Fregosi to victory at Fannie Bay.

(Story and photo from NT News, February 13 2012. Photo shows Phillip surrounded by female admirers)

AFL player Steve Johnson, and his partner Erin Biggs, welcomed their first child on January 20 – a son named Archie.

Steve plays for the Geelong Cats, and at the time his son was born, was named as part of the club’s leadership group.

Archie Johnson is the second celebrity baby named Archie just in the month of January; this must be a significant sign of the name’s growing popularity.

Rugby union star Matt Giteau, and his wife Bianca, welcomed their first child on January 1, making their son Levi the very first celebrity baby of 2012!

Matt played rugby union for the ACT Brumbies, and the national men’s team, the Wallabies. Last year he signed with French club Toulon, and moved to France. Bianca (nee Franklin) is a netball player from country Western Australia who plays for the Adelaide Thunderbirds. An Indigenous Australian, she received the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission Award for West Australian Young Achiever of the Year in 2003.

Bianca and Matt met at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra, where Matt was attracted by Bianca’s athleticism and height (she’s slightly taller than him). Matt and Bianca were married on the Gold Coast in December 2010.

Both Matt and Bianca come from sporting families. Matt’s dad Ron Giteau is a former rugby league player who was captain of the Canberra Raiders, and his older sister Kristy plays both rugby codes for Australia. Bianca’s brother is Australian rules star, Lance “Buddy” Franklin. Levi Giteau has some fantastic sporting genes there.

I do apologise for the lateness of this news, as Levi’s birth in France never seems to have filtered down to the mainstream press.