Tayla shines alongside iconic Thorpe and Olympic legends

While ocean swimmer Tayla Martin had Olympic icon Ian Thorpe AM perched to one side of her and a host of Olympic medallists on the other, she only needed to say a few words for the students at Newington Public School to realise she wasn’t out of her depth.

Martin, who made her debut as a member of the Australian Dolphin Swimming team at the recent World Aquatic Championships in Singapore, found herself in the almost surreal scenario of sharing space with ‘Thorpedo,’ who became a national hero in 2000 after winning three gold medals at the nearby Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre – just a decent paper plane throw away from the school’s assembly hall.

The pair were on hand to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Cathy Freeman igniting the Olympic cauldron to start the Games of the XXVII Olympiad. Its unique link to Sydney 2000 ensured Newington was selected for a special edition of Olympics Unleashed – an Australian Olympic Committee initiative which has allowed 200,000 students across the state, and 500,000 nationally, to be inspired and motivated to be their personal best by listening to the stories of Olympians and those aspiring to become one, like Martin.

The school is situated in the middle of what was the village for 10,000 of the world’s best athletes a quarter of a century ago. While the students were enthralled by Thorpe’s stories, Martin hit home when she spoke of her alopecia – the autoimmune disease she was diagnosed with a month before her first birthday. It killed all of her hair follicles and – as Martin explained – that means she has no hair from head-to-toe.

“It certainly made me different,” the New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) swimmer replied when quizzed by the event’s host, and 2016 Rio gold medallist, Chloe Dalton OAM (pictured above with Martin).

“It’s who I am. It made me stand out and I had to be resilient not just in the water, but in life as well. I was lucky enough I didn’t get bullied in school, but I could’ve been in a different situation. And there were times where I looked in the mirror and I was like, ‘Why do I look different?’ ‘Why aren’t I pretty like a Princess?’ . . .”

“[It is] understanding everyone is different whether you have half a limb, no hair, or you look different. You’re all beautiful on the inside, no matter what. It’s using your inner strength to bloom “

Martin later said that in age where social media can dictate what society deems to be ‘beautiful’ or ‘normal,’ it’s important children appreciate the true meaning of ‘beauty’.

“I really try to reinforce that because people see images on social media platforms, in movies or television, and they say, ‘I want to be pretty like her’,” she said. “But the truth is while we can’t all be models; inner beauty is special and important.”

Her words made a huge impact on Anna Meares OAM, who, as an athlete, defined courage and resilience on her way to capturing six Olympic medals as a track cyclist – two of which were gold. More recently, as the Aussie team’s Chef de Mission at last year’s Paris Games, Meares was praised by athletes and officials for both her professionalism and the human touch she brought to a pressure-packed role.

“I was glued to Tayla,” said Meares of the swimmer who aspires to compete at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games . “There’s an aura about her that’s really beautiful and positive.

“I think her impact is going to be really big, and not just because of sport. I think she’s going to share a message and an insight far beyond the sporting field. I’m excited to see how she goes forward with it.”

Martin and Thorpe were joined at Newington by Kerri Pottharst OAM, a Sydney Games Beach Volleyball gold medallist; triple Olympian Melinda Gainsford Taylor AM, Rugby Sevens star Chole Dalton, who struck gold at Rio in 2016; Daniel Collins a Sydney silver medallist for Canoe Sprint, and his son Jackson, who claimed silver in the same sport at Paris.

Each shared wonderfully simple stories that resonated with the children, although Dan Collins’s description of ‘failure’ being a ‘Magnum Moment’ risks harming the tuck shop’s profits.

“In the Olympic [Athlete’s] Village everything is for free,” he said. “You go to a Coca Cola machine, and a can of drink will come out. In 1992 [Barcelona] there were Magnum ice creams everywhere, and I enjoy my food . . .  there’s a couple of things I could do for Australia, and one of them is eat!

“So, Magnums were everywhere, and I lost focus. I ate lots of them because they were everywhere and free! So, when I got home, I renamed ‘failure’ as ‘Magnum Moments’. That means when I know I can do better that’s a Magnum moment!”

Pottharst, who starred on Bondi Beach alongside her playing partner Natlie Cook OAM, spoke about the thrill of having 10,000 supporters roaring them onto victory.

“All these faces – 10,000 Australians – were screaming for us,” she recalled.” It was scary at first, but by the end of it we absolutely loved it! It felt like the waves pushed us up onto the podium.

With his name adorning the back of some of the students’ shirts because one of the four Newington’s ‘house’ teams is named in his honour, Thorpe spoke to the children about coping with pressure, and age being a mere number.

“I was pretty young at the Olympic Games,” the NSWIS alumni said. “Is anyone here 10-years-old? [hands raise] That’s a lot of people! So, I was your age when we found out Sydney was having the Olympics.

“I thought I’d be too young for the Sydney Olympics [but it turned out I wasn’t]. So, if you’re thinking Brisbane in seven years’ time [is too far off] well, it is a possibility for people around your age [to compete].

“There was a lot of expectations on me going into the Olympics. I was the World Champion and the World Record holder. People thought it’d be easy for me to win. It wasn’t easy, but I was able to train very hard, prepare as best I could for that moment, and was able to walk away with a few Olympic gold medals . . .  “

Gainsford Taylor explained how the experience she attained as a three-time Olympian galvanised her to deal with the hopes and expectations of 110,000 screaming Aussie fans when she stepped onto the Sydney Olympic Stadium’s track.

“I coach young athletes your age, and everything comes easier with the more experience you have,” she said. “At my first Olympics I was insanely nervous, but by my third I’d been there and done that. You put in the hard work and sacrifice that develops confidence.

“By the time I lined up and they said ‘Melinda Gainsford Taylor lane five’ I’d never heard a roar like it. Luckily for me, I had that experience and it pushed me down the track.”

Jackson Collins (photographed above), who played Aussie Rules and other sports including boxing, taekwondo and surf lifesaving before focussing on kayaking, said having an Olympian for a father who didn’t force him to follow in his footsteps let him find his own life’s path.

“[Dad] always supported me in what I wanted to do, and my dreams,” said Collins. “I’ve got a younger brother, and it was always about us – he never put any pressure on us about ‘you have to achieve these things because it’s what I did’.”

Meares was certain each message had the potential to make a mark on the students and their teachers.

“The messages were powerful,” she said. “They went beyond sport, and I think that’s important.

“Kids are under a lot of pressure: exams, peer pressure, social pressures . . .  I think it’s good for them to hear things like ‘it’s fine to be different;’ ‘it’s OK to fail’ and that it’s important to set goals.”

And there was a message, from Gainsford Taylor, that may inspire a (then) 17-year-old from Newington’s class of 2025 to shine at the Brisbane home Games in seven short years time.

“If we can become Olympians,” she said. “The you can, too.”

*NSWIS is proud to support the AOC initiative, Olympics Unleashed

Daniel Lane, NSWIS

Photo of Ian Thorpe and school children courtesy of Victoria Anderson, AOC