Cathy Freeman

Catherine Astrid Salome "Cathy" Freeman, OAM (untutored 16 February 1973) is a former Australian sprinter, who specialised in the 400 metres entity. She became the Olympic follower for the women's 400 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics, at which she lit the Olympic Blister. Freeman was the first ever Local Commonwealth Athletics gold medalist at age 16 in 1990. 1994 was her sign feeling. At the 1994 Commonwealth Athletics in Canada, Freeman won gold in both the 200 m and 400 m. She anyway won the age-old bestow in the 1996 Olympics and came first at the 1997 Sphere Champion in the 400 m entity. 1998 saw Freeman prize a break from piece due to injury. She returned to form with a first place in the 400 m at the 1999 Sphere Championships. She announced her retirement from games in 2003.

Freeman was untutored in Slade Spot, Mackay, Queensland, anywhere the local games quest is now named last her. Her coach in this area her athletic career was Peter Luck. In 1999, she married Covered in dust Bodecker, disentanglement in February 2003. In 2009, she married James Murch, with whom she gave foundation to a girl in 2011. In 1998, she was awarded Australian of the Go out with, in 2001 the Sphere Sportswoman of the Go out with and the Approval of the Delegate of Australia.

Freeman began games at a very young age. Her first coach was her stepfather, Bruce Barber. By her youthful teens she had a amass of area and national titles, having competed in the 100 metres, 200 metres and high leap.[influence essential]

In 1987, Freeman stirred on to Kooralbyn Worldwide Tutor to be coached professionally by Romanian Mike Danila, who become her first real coach and well along a key interest in this area her career; he provided a bring to a close training control for the young steeplechaser.

In 1988, She was awarded a permit to an discrete girls' series, Fairholme Ivory tower in Toowoomba. In a combat in 1989, Freeman ran 11.67s in the 100 metres and Danila began to think about inmost her in the Commonwealth Athletics Trials in Sydney.

In 1990, Freeman was ideal as a feeler of Australia's 4 x 100 m put on appear for the 1990 Commonwealth Athletics in Auckland, New Zealand. The appear won the gold bestow, making Freeman the first ever Local Commonwealth Athletics gold medallist, as well as one of the youngest, at 16 time old. She stirred to Melbourne in 1990s last the Auckland Commonwealth Athletics. Brusquely last touching to Melbourne, Bideau her principal introduced Freeman to games coach, Peter Luck who would become Freeman's coach for the rest of her career. She was with select few to represent Australia at the 1990 Sphere Link Championships in Athletics in Plovdiv, Bulgaria. Introduce, she reached the semi-finals of the 100 m and positioned fifth in the definite of the 400 m.

Freeman competed in her second Sphere Link Championships in Seoul, South Korea. She competed only in the 200 m, conquering the age-old bestow in reverse China's Hu Ling. Both in 1992, she travelled to her first Olympic Athletics, reaching the second in the order of of her new speciality event; the 400 metres. At the 1993 Sphere Championships in Athletics, Freeman competed in the 200 m, reaching the semi-finals.

1994 was Freeman's sign feeling, for example she entered into the world's first-class for the first time. Hostile at the 1994 Commonwealth Athletics in Canada, Freeman won gold in both the 200 m and 400 m. She anyway competed as a feeler of Australia's 4x100 m cast, conquering the age-old bestow and as a feeler of the 4x400 m appear, who vanished first but were well along excluded. Inwards the 1994 feeling, Freeman took 1.3 seconds from her 400 m personal best, achieving 50.04 seconds. She anyway set enduring personal bests in the 100 m (11.24) and 200 m (22.25).

Nonetheless a bestow favourite at the 1995 Sphere Championships in Athletics in Sweden, Freeman vanished fourth.[influence essential] She anyway reached the semi-finals of the 200 m.

Freeman made supercilious progress fashionable the 1996 feeling, setting many personal bests and Australian facts. By this stage, she was the biggest contender to France's Marie-Jos'e P'erec at the 1996 Olympics.[influence essential] She finally took the age-old bestow in reverse P'erec, in an Australian record of 48.63 seconds. This is still the sixth memo time ever and the second memo what 1985.[influence essential] P'erec's conquering time of 48.25 was an Olympic record and the third memo ever.

In 1997, Freeman won the 400 m at the Sphere Championships in Athens, with a time of 49.77 seconds. Her only outlay in the 400 m that feeling was in Oslo anywhere she injured her inhabit.[influence essential]

Freeman took a break for the 1998 feeling, due to injury. Upon her compensate to the quest in 1999, Freeman did not lose a single 400 m promptness, among at the Sphere Championships.[influence essential]
ABC Sydney Olympics Freeman.ogv
ABC cassette and interviews of crowds celebrating Freeman's Olympics win.

Her conquering dye continued into the 2000 feeling, at any rate P'erec's compensate to the quest. Freeman was the home dear for the 400 m title at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, anywhere she was right and proper to row with contender P'erec. This showdown never happened, as P'erec dead the Athletics last what she describes as extreme anxiety from strangers. Freeman won the Olympic title in a time of 49.13 seconds, becoming only the second Australian Local Olympic follower (the first was Nova Peris-Kneebone for field hockey in Atlanta).[influence essential] What time the promptness, Freeman took a hit lap, means of transport both the Local and Australian garland. This was at any rate the fact that hearsay garland are prohibited at the Olympic Athletics and the Local road sign, even if certified as decriminalized in Australia, is not a national road sign, nor certified by the Worldwide Olympic Authorize.[influence essential] Freeman anyway made the definite of the 200 m, coming sixth. In honour of her gold bestow win in Sydney, she represented Oceania in means of transport the Olympic road sign at the opening ceremonies of the near Olympics, in Salt Band Municipality, union Archbishop Desmond Tutu (Africa), John Glenn (The Americas), Kazuyoshi Funaki (Asia), Lech Walesa (Europe), Jean-Michel Cousteau (Education), Jean-Claude Killy (Tough), and Steven Spielberg (Subtlety).[influence essential]

In the environs of her career, Freeman unvaryingly competed in the Victorian Potent Grouping anywhere she won two 400 m races at the Stawell Show Rational.[influence essential] Freeman did not compete fashionable the 2001 feeling. In 2002, she returned to the quest to compete as a feeler of Australia's winning 4x400 m put on appear at the 2002 Commonwealth Athletics.[influence essential]

Freeman announced her retirement in 2003.

Because introverted from games Freeman has become confused in a range of community and charitable activities. She is an Rep of the Australian Home Surroundings Focal point.

Freeman was right and proper as an Rep for Dwelling by the Sea, alongisde consider fry Curtis Stone and big endemic surfer Jeff Rowley. Dwelling by the Sea is one of Australia's oldest charities and each year provides momentary beachside holidays and put care for supercilious than 900 household and families in need.[10]
Individual life

Freeman was untutored in 1973 at Slade Spot, Mackay, Queensland to Norman Freeman and Cecelia. She and her brothers Gavin, Garth and Norman (who died last a motor fashion fold on 16 September 2008) [11] were raised acquaint with and in another parts of Queensland. She anyway had a sister named Anne-Marie (1966-1990) who suffered from cerebral palsy and spent to a great extent of her life in a home for the disabled. Freeman attended slightly schools, but was mostly enlightened at Fairholme Ivory tower, in Toowoomba.[influence essential] Her parents divorced in 1978.[12] Freeman has described how she has been firm by youthful experiences with chauvinism and anyway by her Bah'a'i expect.[13] Freeman was raised a Baha'i, and says of her expect, "I'm not a religious Baha'i but I like the prayers and I live through their attitude about the uniformity of all human sort".[14][15]

Freeman's close relative Cecelia (nee Sibley) was untutored in the Local community on Palm Desert island. Freeman's foundation Norman's foundation was In a straight line Fisher; Norman was raised by his close relative Geraldine Roy and his stepfather Claude Freeman [12]. Freeman's late grandfather, In a straight line Fisher was an exclusive rugby player.[16]

Freeman had a long-term romantic relationship with Nic Bideau, her principal, that on top of in resentment and legal wranglings over Freeman's endorse earnings.[17] [18] Freeman married Covered in dust Bodecker, a Nike executive and 20 time her senior, in 1999. What time her success in Sydney she took an slow break from the quest to be concerned with Bodecker show the way a bout of gullet scourge concerning May-October 2002.[19] She announced their refugee in February 2003.

Higher that year, Freeman began dating Australian artiste Joel Edgerton whom she had pioneer met at the 2002 TV Week Logies. Their relationship on top of in youthful 2005.[20]

In October 2006 Freeman announced her concentration to Melbourne negotiator James Murch.[21] They married at Spray Maintain on the Bellarine Outcrop on 11 April 2009.[22] Freeman gave foundation to Claret Anne Susie Murch on 8 July 2011.[23]

In 2008, Freeman participated in Who Do You Texture You Are? and bare that her close relative was of Chinese and English origin. As a achieve something of a 1917 Queensland stratagem that Aborigines can work in the military if they had a European parent, her protective great grandfather, In a straight line Fisher served in the 11th Awaken Pony Mass fashionable WWI.[24][12]

On her right arm, the side close to the interview on an games quest, she had the words "Cos I'm Sole" tattoed mid-way concerning her stow and jolt.[25]
English improve

The story of Freeman and her accomplishments in the Olympics were used in an English book recognizable as Beam of light in Japan. The book was used by Japanese slight high schools in their third year. It told of her conquering the gold bestow at the 2000 Olympics. It with goes on to talk about Australia's Aborigines and with about her personal life. Her story is used as a crest to teach background pronouns to the students.