Australian swimming icon to speak at sports awards night

By PATRICIA KEAMO
AUSTRALIAN swimming icon and Olympic gold medallist Leisel Jones will be the guest speaker for the 32nd edition of the SP Brewery- sponsored sports awards night on June 1.
Jones, who is regarded as one of the greatest female swimmers and the first Australian swimmer to compete at four Olympics, will be speaking on how she had disciplined herself to achieve dizzy heights in her career – in line with the event’s theme ‘Discipline starts with you’.
Meanwhile, the awards committee will be announcing the finalists for the 11 awards categories today.
Apart from appearing at the awards night, Jones will also be attending some sports engagements, including a visit to the Boroko Swimming Club where she’s scheduled to have a session with the juniors on Saturday (June 1).
Jones made it no secret about her love for rugby league, like most Papua New Guineans, and she’s also confirmed to attend the SP Hunters’ home game that Saturday, before gracing the awards night.
“I’m excited for this opportunity (to be the guest speaker) and also looking forward to watching some local footy as well as meeting the swim club,” Jones told The National.
“We’ve got a two-hour swim clinic in the morning of the Saturday, so I will be there helping all the athletes out, especially the juniors.
“I will also be catching up with some old athletes from my career in the past including Ryan Pini.”
At the age of 15, she was the youngest member of the 2000 Olympic swimming team in Sydney, where she won two silver medals in the 100m breaststroke and 4x100m medley relay, making her one of the youngest Olympic medallists in Australia’s history.
At 18 she competed in her second Olympic Games in Athens, winning gold in world record time in the 4x100m medley relay, silver in the 200m breaststroke and a bronze medal in the 100m breaststroke.
After facing many adversities and setbacks, she finally fulfilled her dream of winning individual Olympic gold in Beijing, 2008 in the 100m breaststroke. She also won gold in the 4x100m medley relay and silver in the 200m breaststroke.
Before farewelling her swimming career (and swimsuit wedgies), Leisel competed in her fourth Olympic Games in London in 2012, finishing on a high by winning a silver medal in the 4x100m medley relay and becoming the first Australian swimmer to compete at four Olympics.