A Special Memory – Sydney 2000 Olympic Games

The Sydney Olympic Games was a very special time in Australian sporting history. I was honoured to have been named as a  Australian team coach for these games (400m/relay). As such, I worked with a number of athletes but perhaps the most notable outside of my own squad, was Catherine Freeman who went on to win gold in the 400m. In many respects, I felt like a shadow in history , such was the occasion of Freeman representing Australia at these Games.

Whilst not her personal coach, at the Sydney Games my role was to make sure everything ran as smoothly as possible in the lead up to her race. I recall taking her from the warm up track to the main stadium. It was
heaving with 112,000 spectators and much anticipation for the 400m final. Cathy was relaxed
and focused as we made our way to her final check in. When we arrived, I wished her well and
she waved me good bye with a smile. I made my way into the stands thinking how composed she
was – almost as if she was at a local athletics meet!

A short time later I watched Cathy win, what I believe was the most pressured race in Australian
Sporting history. She won the gold in the time of 49.11.

As the team coach I thought I should go back out to the warm up track to congratulate Cathy and
make sure all was ok. It was a challenging process as the night of athletics was finished and over
100,000 people were also heading for the exits. I started questioning why I needed to go – I have
never been an admirer of people living in reflected glory. I changed my mind and decided to walk
back to the Olympic Village. The atmosphere was electric and I was enjoying the return walk when
my phone rang.

On the screen it said “Freeman”. I felt terrible. I should have persisted and gone out to the warm
up track. Was she ok? Why was she ringing? I answered the phone with a bit of trepidation and
started off by saying ‘Congratulations on a great run Cathy!..” The understatement of the century!

Cathy thanked me and told me she was glad it was finally over and she could relax. After a bit of
small talk I asked Cathy, “What exactly are you ringing me?” She replied: “I was doing my warm
down and I couldn’t remember if you said our relay training tomorrow was at 9 or 10?”
I just laughed and told her that training was at 9am but she had earned the morning off. I told her
to soak up the moment and enjoy the night. I smiled as I hung up the phone…
The next morning I arrived at the track at 8.45am to set things up. Freeman was already there,
ready for the session to start.

For me Cathy Freeman represents many things but one of them is certainly her mindset. Her laser
focus on what she has to do and her sense of commitment and responsibility. She is a superstar
on many levels.