Swimmer of the Year 2008

The evening of October 27^th was a wonderful experience of closure for me. It marked the last Swimmer of the Year event that I will probably ever attend, and certainly the last as a member of the Australian National Swimming Team.

The experiences that I have lived through swimming, shared with my teammates, and of course shared with my friends and family, will forever be close to my heart. I was humbled and touched to receive an award (as did all other retiring Olympians) for my services to the Australian Swimming Team. Upon receiving the award, when I was asked if I’ll miss the early mornings of training I laughed and said …

Certainly not! But what I will miss are my teammates. I’ve had so many amazing experiences through swimming over the years, all made so much more special because of the teammates I’ve been able to share them with. So thank you to my teammates, for making it so much more special.

I love swimming, and will always love swimming. Although I’ve found myself spending more time out on the surf on my beautiful new surfboard, I still take myself to the pool and enjoy chasing that black line.

In future I plan to get involved with masters swimming; especially as World Masters Championships are in Sydney in 2009! But for now, I’m enjoying riding my bike to work at Greenpeace, surfing when the waves are right for my skill (and having a go still when they aren’t!) and enjoying a different pace of life.

To all my wonderful teammates over the many years, thank you.

To my friends for supporting me while I travelled so much, thank you.

And to my family, who saw me through and made every dream I dreamt possible… thank you. x