- Joined
- Sep 28, 2000
- Posts
- 4,510
- Reaction score
- 2,015
- AFL Club
- Essendon
- Other Teams
- Pittsburgh Penguins
Freeman quits, a nation salutes
By staff writers and wires
July 16, 2003
SPECULATION mounted today over the next career of Olympic gold medallist Cathy Freeman after she announced her retirement from athletics in London overnight.
High point ... 400m gold in Sydney
Federal Opposition leader Simon Crean today suggested a tilt at politics while Athletics Australia said it hoped she would continue her work with young indigenous athletes. Others claimed she could have continued to make her mark on the track.
Mr Crean said Freeman could use her fame to advance the cause of reconciliation, saying the sprinter has "clearly got a future in politics" if she choose to pursue it.
Asked whether he would like to recruit Freeman to the ALP, Mr Crean said: "That's a decision for Cathy to make. She knows what is in her best interests. She is a committed person, I know that from previous experience... I just wish her well for the future."
While the tributes poured in, Raelene Boyle, three-time Olympic silver medallist in the 1970s and 1980s, said she believed Freeman still had “running in her”.
”She's only 30 and when you look at Cath physically she hasn't beaten her body up like we did when we were running,” Boyle said on Melbourne radio 3AW.
”She's had long breaks and she hasn't had a constant career.
”She's had the best of all worlds because she's been able to finance it where we didn't have money to have masseurs and all the likes with us all the time,” Boyle said.
Freeman announced her retirement from all athletics after meeting Australian track and field coach Keith Connor at London's Heathrow airport last night.
She said she was retiring because she had lost the drive to compete at the top level.
"My heart's not in it,” she said, “I feel sad because it is hard letting go of something so special and so dear.”
Dawn Fraser, Australia's greatest Olympian, said Freeman was right to retire.
The 66-year-old, who won swimming gold medals at three consecutive Olympics in the 1950s and 1960s, said she understood Freeman had lost the “fire” needed for the 2004 Olympics in Athens and to stay at the top of world athletics.
”I understand specifically the reason why she's retired,” Fraser said.
”I think it's the right decision because she's lost a lot of the fire that would make her continue to go to Athens.”
Most agree it is Freeman’s mind and not her body that is holding her back.
Athletics Australia chief selector David Culbert said today Freeman did not have the drive to work as hard as younger athletes who were yet to enjoy her level of success. ”Just contemplate going down to the track this morning and running 10 (laps of) 300m until you want to vomit,” Culbert said.
”That's graphic, but that's what an international 400m athlete has to do.
”If you haven't won a world title or an Olympic title they're the things you're prepared to do and that's what her opposition's doing and that's what Jana Pittman's doing every day at the moment.”
However, Culbert said he hoped Freeman would be involved in coaching the next generation of Australian athletics stars.
”She's got an important role to play in the development of young athletes around Australia and I'm sure we'll see her in that role in the future,'' Culbert said.
Freeman's long-time coach Peter Fortune said: "It is a mixture of sadness and relief for everyone. It is the end of a significant era in Australian athletics.”
Fortune said he had known for several weeks that his charge was approaching the end of the road.
"I'd certainly known for a little while that Paris was definitely out and I just wanted her not to rush the decision," he said.
"I don't think I could have been able to talk her out of it – when she makes up her mind there's not anything anyone can do about that."
While Freeman has continued to train with Fortune and a training partner in London it has been a very modified program.
Her retirement could mean the scrapping of the relay team at the Paris titles because reserves Susan Andrews and Rosemary Hayward both have just started back from injuries.
Last year Freeman made a last-minute decision to join 400m hurdler Jana Pittman, Tamsyn Lewis and Lauren Hewitt in the relay team at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.
FREEMAN FACTBOX
Born: Mackay
Birthdate: 16/02/1973
Major international medals
Olympics: 1st 400m (2000), 2nd 400m (1996)
World championships: 1st (1997, 1999), 4x400m relay: 3rd (1995)
Commonwealth Games: 200m: 1st (1994), 400m: 1st (1994), 4x100m relay: 1st (1990), 2nd (1994), 4x400m: 1st (2002)
------------------------------------------
Well thank christ for that. She's one athlete that I can't stand, especially can't stand how the media continually go on and on about her.
By staff writers and wires
July 16, 2003
SPECULATION mounted today over the next career of Olympic gold medallist Cathy Freeman after she announced her retirement from athletics in London overnight.
High point ... 400m gold in Sydney
Federal Opposition leader Simon Crean today suggested a tilt at politics while Athletics Australia said it hoped she would continue her work with young indigenous athletes. Others claimed she could have continued to make her mark on the track.
Mr Crean said Freeman could use her fame to advance the cause of reconciliation, saying the sprinter has "clearly got a future in politics" if she choose to pursue it.
Asked whether he would like to recruit Freeman to the ALP, Mr Crean said: "That's a decision for Cathy to make. She knows what is in her best interests. She is a committed person, I know that from previous experience... I just wish her well for the future."
While the tributes poured in, Raelene Boyle, three-time Olympic silver medallist in the 1970s and 1980s, said she believed Freeman still had “running in her”.
”She's only 30 and when you look at Cath physically she hasn't beaten her body up like we did when we were running,” Boyle said on Melbourne radio 3AW.
”She's had long breaks and she hasn't had a constant career.
”She's had the best of all worlds because she's been able to finance it where we didn't have money to have masseurs and all the likes with us all the time,” Boyle said.
Freeman announced her retirement from all athletics after meeting Australian track and field coach Keith Connor at London's Heathrow airport last night.
She said she was retiring because she had lost the drive to compete at the top level.
"My heart's not in it,” she said, “I feel sad because it is hard letting go of something so special and so dear.”
Dawn Fraser, Australia's greatest Olympian, said Freeman was right to retire.
The 66-year-old, who won swimming gold medals at three consecutive Olympics in the 1950s and 1960s, said she understood Freeman had lost the “fire” needed for the 2004 Olympics in Athens and to stay at the top of world athletics.
”I understand specifically the reason why she's retired,” Fraser said.
”I think it's the right decision because she's lost a lot of the fire that would make her continue to go to Athens.”
Most agree it is Freeman’s mind and not her body that is holding her back.
Athletics Australia chief selector David Culbert said today Freeman did not have the drive to work as hard as younger athletes who were yet to enjoy her level of success. ”Just contemplate going down to the track this morning and running 10 (laps of) 300m until you want to vomit,” Culbert said.
”That's graphic, but that's what an international 400m athlete has to do.
”If you haven't won a world title or an Olympic title they're the things you're prepared to do and that's what her opposition's doing and that's what Jana Pittman's doing every day at the moment.”
However, Culbert said he hoped Freeman would be involved in coaching the next generation of Australian athletics stars.
”She's got an important role to play in the development of young athletes around Australia and I'm sure we'll see her in that role in the future,'' Culbert said.
Freeman's long-time coach Peter Fortune said: "It is a mixture of sadness and relief for everyone. It is the end of a significant era in Australian athletics.”
Fortune said he had known for several weeks that his charge was approaching the end of the road.
"I'd certainly known for a little while that Paris was definitely out and I just wanted her not to rush the decision," he said.
"I don't think I could have been able to talk her out of it – when she makes up her mind there's not anything anyone can do about that."
While Freeman has continued to train with Fortune and a training partner in London it has been a very modified program.
Her retirement could mean the scrapping of the relay team at the Paris titles because reserves Susan Andrews and Rosemary Hayward both have just started back from injuries.
Last year Freeman made a last-minute decision to join 400m hurdler Jana Pittman, Tamsyn Lewis and Lauren Hewitt in the relay team at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester.
FREEMAN FACTBOX
Born: Mackay
Birthdate: 16/02/1973
Major international medals
Olympics: 1st 400m (2000), 2nd 400m (1996)
World championships: 1st (1997, 1999), 4x400m relay: 3rd (1995)
Commonwealth Games: 200m: 1st (1994), 400m: 1st (1994), 4x100m relay: 1st (1990), 2nd (1994), 4x400m: 1st (2002)
------------------------------------------
Well thank christ for that. She's one athlete that I can't stand, especially can't stand how the media continually go on and on about her.
