Mitchell-Gumley Uses Personal Experience as NSWIS Athlete Advocate

When Melissa Mitchell-Gumley turns up for work at the New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) in her role as Senior Sports Program Coordinator, she channels her experience as a member of the Australian Swimming team to ensure she’s a strong advocate for the athlete.

At 16, Mitchell-Gumley was the youngest member of the 42-member strong 2004 swimming team that performed brilliantly at the Athens Olympics by winning 15 medals, of which seven were gold.

While selected as a member of the women’s 4 x 200m freestyle relay team, Athens was a ‘learning’ curve for the teenager who wasn’t used in the squad’s Olympic campaign. However, she was in the Aussie 2005 relay team that won silver and then gold in 2006 at the World Championship.

“There was a lot to take in at such a young age,” she said. “But I’m glad I was told that I may not get another opportunity to go to an Olympics. I’m grateful I listened because in dealing with progressive and undiagnosed heart and lung issues at the time, it didn’t happen again for me. 

“So, I soaked it all up and enjoyed it. There was good and bad about going to Athens so young in what was my first senior team, but there were great moments. I walked out in the opening ceremony, something that was unusual for a swimmer, but I was given permission because [the 4 x 200m relay team] was swimming after Day 5. So, it’s a memory that will stay with my forever. 

While the Olympics experience is something Mitchell-Gumley treasures – including the memory of her 17th birthday celebrations in the Athlete’s Village – she recalled it was also a time where she and her peers would have benefited from the scope of support NSWIS Athlete Coordinators provide the Institute’s scholarship holders. 

“There wasn’t a lot of guidance about where to go to for support,” said Mitchell-Gumley, who, through her role at NSWIS, supports athletes in the Institute’s Swimming, Cycling, Triathlon, Canoe Slalom and Canoe Sprint programs.  

“I was very young . . . 16 when I made the Athens Olympic team . . . and besides my family, I didn’t know who to go to for what, so it was a lot of guess work. Going through school and doing the HSC was tough because you had to try to work out what options were available to you at a time in your life when you’re just starting to travel the world.  

“It wasn’t as clear cut as it is now, but I was very lucky to have parents – and my coach (Brian Wilkinson) – who were extremely supportive and did all the research and hard work.” 

After completing her communications degree and working in the fast-paced world of corporate affairs, Mitchell-Gumley – who also has a Masters of Administration and, in 2016, was accepted to the prestigious Harvard Executive Leadership program in Boston- realised she could use her experiences and skills to assist others when her former NSWIS Sport Coordinator, Daniel Blattman, suggested she ought to apply to join the team.  

“It was an opportunity to get into High Performance sport which is something I’m passionate about and something I thought I could have an impact on,” said Mitchell-Gumley. 

“I wanted to join NSWIS and help athletes navigate the pathway . . .  to have not as confusing a journey as I did. I thought I could use this role to help make life a little less complicated so the athletes could just focus on training and racing as opposed to wondering how to navigate ‘X, Y and Z.’ 

“I see the athlete perspective quite clearly, and that’s always front of mind whenever I’m doing anything. There’s a lot of process work to do, so I ensure there is a voice for athletes in keeping it as simple as possible and in their interests.” 

Besides Mitchell-Gumley, NSWIS’s athletes and sports programs are well represented by a team of coordinators including Michelle Arnold (Hockey, Rowing, Sailing, Surfing); Jocelyn Burnett (Water Polo, Individual Athlete Program, Diving); Mark Wilson (Archery AB/Para) and Michael Perry (Athletics). 

“It’s definitely a great team to be a part of, and there’s a lot of banter” said Mitchell-Gumley. “I love that we all work closely together and that we’re aligned with our performance goals, values and passionate about our work. I think something that makes a lot of difference is, wherever possible, we discuss strategies we have used in different situations with one another. 

“NSWIS might have a broad range of sports, but the athletes’ situations are similar across sport. I love working with multi-sports because you can learn so much from the way each sport does things and you can either apply it to what you’re working with, or at least show one particular sport what the others are doing.  

“It’s great to have easy access to that rather than trying to work it out yourself. I’m grateful to have worked with a variety of sports at NSWIS over the last nine years. I’ve been able to step out of swimming to see how other sports operate – how they navigate different circumstances – and then bring that back into a sport I’m looking after.” 

Her career at NSWIS has also allowed Mitchell-Gumley to travel to world sporting events as: 

• The 2018 Commonwealth Games Sport Liaison Officer/Brisbane Subsite Management 
•  2021 Australian Paralympic Team Accommodation Coordinator (Pre-Games) 

•  2022 Australian Under 21 Rowing Team Manger 
•  2022 Commonwealth Games Team Experience Coordinator/Village Management Team. 

“I’ve loved being on the ‘other side’ of the sporting fence to see how it works,” she said. “The teams have been great to work with and I love that high pressure environment because I switch ‘on’ and get going; get it done.  

“I get a lot out of seeing the ‘pinnacle’ of our work, seeing the athletes do well and getting an insight into big events. You are seeing it live, in action, and get to bring that energy back into the next cycle’s planning.” 

Mitchell-Gumley said there was an indicator which allowed Sports Coordinators to know whether they’d done their job successfully. 

“If the athletes don’t know about any dramas happening in the background you’ve done your job,” she said. “An example of that was at the last Commonwealth Games when our whole plan for where we were setting up was completely scrapped as soon as we hit the ground.  

“Within 24 hours we needed to rethink a new plan, produce new safety plans, and get them all submitted. What added to the pressure was while we had 12 people one day, we only had two the next.  

“That meant we had to get as much work done as possible while we had the ‘resources’ available to us. We spent the day scouting for a new location – it needed to be accessible for Paras – because the issue we were dealing with was when we arrived to set up, we found the area was overgrown, there were ditches everywhere.  

“There was a lot going on and just having to convince the safety marshalls there was enough room at the front for emergency vehicles if they were needed was a challenge. We also had to be willing to take tents down and pack things up if the weather turned crazy. In the end it was all done on time . . .and the most important thing was the athletes didn’t know anything about it.” 

While Mitchell-Gumley is preparing to take leave to give birth to her second child, she continues to turn up to work each day with the key purpose she took from her time as an elite athlete. 

“There’s things I learnt from my swimming career about what I would and wouldn’t do, or would or wouldn’t support,” she said. “These days I like to think I’m an advocate for the athletes and that I speak up for them when I believe something isn’t in their best interests.  

“I try to bring that experience and commitment to NSWIS day to day to help them.” 

Daniel Lane, NSWIS.