Rio Olympic and Paralympic Games

Adjourned debate on motion of Hon. T. T. Ngo:

That this council wishes all Australian athletes every success in competing in the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio and, in particular, the South Australian athletes.

(Continued from 27 July 2016.)

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (19:59): I rise to speak to the Hon. Tung Ngo's motion commending those South Australians in particular, and of course Australians, who were off to the Olympics. As we know, the Olympics have come and gone. While I rise in support, I do not do so simply commending those South Australians and Australians who participated in the Olympics but, indeed, I wish to commend all athletes who have participated in these and every Olympics. I do so noting the spirit of the Olympics and, indeed, the modern Olympics, which are that time every four years when individuals strive, on behalf of their countries, for human greatness in the human form at this event.

It is a time that blends sport and culture. Of course, we know that it is hosted by a different country each four years, and that the opening and closing ceremonies are times where those countries show off and showcase their particular cultures, and that those athletes come together in a way that, I think, transcends the boundaries of nation-states. I rise to commend all Olympians and to observe the lives of two particular Olympians who were medallists in the year of my birth, 1968—the Mexico City Olympics.

They are Olympians possibly not well known to us as Australians in terms of the popular culture. One was a Czechoslovakian gymnast who was a many-time medallist, Věra Čáslavská. She attended those Olympics shortly after she had signed the Two Thousand Words Manifesto in Czechoslovakia and shortly before the Russians invaded her country. As a result, a few weeks prior to competing in those Olympics in Mexico City, she fled to the countryside in Moravia where she actually had to train with a fallen tree in the forest as her balance beam, lifting sacks of coal and sacks of potatoes to keep her strength up, and swinging from tree branches, using the forest floor as a vault.

She was known to me when I was growing up as a former elite champion gymnast with a blonde bouffant hairstyle, a very engaging manner, a large smile, and a woman who enchanted Mexico City with her floor routine that featured the Mexican hat dance. She was actually a medallist and she shared the gold medal platform with a Russian gymnast, at which point she turned her head to the right and away when they played the Russian national anthem because her country had just been invaded, she was facing persecution on returning to Czechoslovakia and she had taken a political stand.

Indeed, she paid a high price for that political stand she took on the podium of the Olympics that day. As she said, 'After ascending the summit of Olympus, the journey downward did not exactly follow the well-trodden path. It consisted of rocks, gorges and a bottomless pit.' Along with other Czech athletes, she was investigated by the new government for being an unhealthy influence. She was barred from competing and, when she refused to recant her political views, she was denied employment as a coach.

After 1975, she was allowed to advise coaches of the national gymnastics team, but was never allowed to travel abroad to competitions. Between 1970 and 1981, she coached the Mexican national team. I think they had a great deal of affection for her, particularly after that particular floor routine with the Mexican hat dance. After the Velvet Revolution of 1989, which ended decades of communist rule, she was appointed as an advisor to President Vaclav Havel on sports and social issues, and, in the 1990s, she was a chairwoman of the Czechoslovakian Olympic committee, after the division of Czechoslovakia, of the Czech Olympic committee, and she returned to be a member of the International Olympic Committee between 1995 and 2001.

In the 1990s she divorced her husband. Her son wounded him on the dance floor of a nightclub and he died. For 10 years, following that, she suffered depression and became somewhat of a recluse and was rarely seen in public. This was a woman who had engaged the world, who had been a medallist, who was an Olympic athlete, and the story of her life behind that wonderful vision of her becoming a medallist at the Mexico City Olympics is one that I think was sad and devastating and was brought about partly by her stand politically but, of course, also her own personal circumstances.

I also want to talk about an Australian: an Australian who stood in one of the most famous scenes of the Mexico Olympics when he shared the podium with two black athletes. Those athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, had finished first and third in the 200-metres final. Peter Norman, of course, had finished second. Many of us would be very well aware of the symbolism of those two black athletes raising their fists, wearing black leather gloves, as a gesture of protest against racism in their home nation.

Peter Norman, on return to his home country—our country—faced persecution, exclusion and battled with depression. He was excluded in many ways, and I must commend the federal parliament in recent years for correcting some of that by moving a motion in support of him and recognising and apologising to him in federal parliament.

I raise these issues because the Olympics is a time when, every four years, we celebrate the greatest, the fastest, the most powerful, the highest, the strongest, the most graceful, the elite and the dedication that these people put into winning medals and representing their nations. However, it is also an event where those people pay high prices in many cases for that Olympic achievement, and they have rich and complicated and sometimes sad lives. Those athletes who put their all on the line for us should not just be remembered for those achievements but recognised for the great battles they have personally undergone, particularly where they take a political stance. Věra and Peter, to me, are the Olympians that I would like to commend to the chamber tonight.

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (20:07): I rise to speak to the motion moved by the Hon. Tung Ngo wishing our Olympians and Paralympians well for participating in the Rio Olympic Games, particularly those from South Australia. Of course, the opposition supports this motion despite the fact that it is now well after the conclusion of the games. I am sure we all wished our athletes well before they embarked on their respective campaigns for Olympic and Paralympic glory.

In particular, I wish to congratulate the South Australian athletes on their efforts during the respective games. There were 50 South Australian Olympians. Those from athletics were Henry Frayne and Chelsea Jaensch (long jump); Tanya Holliday (20km walk); Kurtis Marschall (pole vault); Jessica Trengove (marathon) who is also the sister of Jack who plays in the AFL for Melbourne—a good South-East family, I believe—and Jared Tallent (50km walk) who won the silver medal.

In badminton we had Leanne Choo from the mixed doubles, and in basketball we had Joe Ingles from the men's basketball team as well as Cayla George, Laura Hodges, Stephanie Talbot and the great Erin Phillips from the women's team. Again, further congratulations to Erin for being drafted to the mighty Adelaide Crows in the AFL women's comp.

In beach volleyball we had the pairs of Maria Fe Artacho del Solar and Nicole Laird, and Louise Bawden and Taliqua Clancy. Represented in BMX was Anthony Dean and, of course, Sam Willoughby who is in our thoughts and prayers as he tries to recover from the terrible accident that he recently had.

In cycling we had Jack Bobridge (team pursuit, silver medal); Patrick Constable (team sprint, sprint and keirin); Alex Edmondson (team pursuit, silver medal) and sister Annette Edmondson (team pursuit and omnium); Matthew Glaetzer (team sprint, sprint and keirin); Stephanie Morton (team sprint, sprint and keirin); Glenn O'Shea (omnium); and Callum Scotson (team pursuit, silver medal).

Of course, the great Anna Meares won a bronze medal in the keirin, and she was in the team sprint and sprint. She was granted the great honour of carrying the Australian flag during the opening ceremony, which was widely expected, given the gravity of her contribution to the Australian Olympic team over her career. She recently announced her retirement, stating that her body was held together by tape during Rio, yet she still managed to win a bronze medal, such is her mental toughness and cycling prowess. I wish her all the best.

In diving we had Grant Nel (three-metre springboard) and in equestrian we had Scott Keach (jumping and individual). In hockey we had Jane Claxton, Karri McMahon, Gabi Nance and Georgie Parker. In rowing we had the aptly named Olympia Aldersey (women's eight); Alexander Belonogoff (men's quad, silver medal); Molly Goodman (women's eight); Alexander Hill (men's four, silver medal); Sally Kehoe (women's double); James McRae (men's quad, silver medal); and Chris Morgan (men's double).

In shooting we had David Chapman (25-metre rapid fire pistol); William Godward (50-metre rifle three positions, men); Jack Rossiter (10-metre air rifle); and Dane Sampson (50-metre rifle three positions, men; 50-metre rifle prone, men; and 10-metre air rifle). In swimming we had Joshua Palmer in the100-metre breaststroke. Kyle Chalmers was one of the great success stories of the Rio games, when the 18-year-old Immanuel College student won gold in the 100-metre freestyle. He also won bronze in the 4 x100 metre freestyle and the 4 x100 metre medley relays. He is also the son of a gun, his father being the former AFL player Brett Chalmers.

In tennis we had Thanasi Kokkinakis, and we look forward to him doing well on the tour in the future. On the trampoline was Blake Gaudry and in water polo, Isobel Bishop. South Australia had nine Paralympians who did a fabulous job. They were, from athletics, Gabriel Cole, Brayden Davidson and Michael Roeger. In the paracanoe there was Jocelyn Neumuller and in cycling there was Kieran Modra, who has certainly done this country and our state an outstanding service over a number of Paralympic Games.

In shooting we had the great Libby Kosmala, who has been to a number of Paralympics and gives an enormous amount back to the sport. In swimming we had Jesse Aungles (100-metre butterfly and many other events) and Liam Bekric. In table tennis we had Sam von Einem.

The feats of many of these athletes in the Paralympics are quite amazing, and in many ways Paralympians are faster and jump higher and are much stronger than their Olympic cousins. In many cases, the suggestion that many of these athletes are disabled is a complete misnomer. The human body is resilient, and when combined with a strong mind it is quite amazing to see what setbacks can be overcome. I again congratulate all Olympians and Paralympians, the medal winners in particular, and I commend the motion to the council.

The Hon. K.L. VINCENT (20:13): I just wanted to put on the record a few brief remarks on behalf of Dignity for Disability, acknowledging the extraordinary achievements of our Olympians and in particular our Paralympians who have done our state very, very proud in these Olympics, and in fact in many Olympics before that. Libby Kosmala is an example of someone who has participated in 12 Paralympics and has just gone into her retirement after 12 Paralympics, which is an extraordinary achievement.

I saw Libby at a function to welcome home the Paralympians just a few weeks ago. I said to her, 'You'll be looking forward to a rest, then?' And Libby said, 'No, I'm going shooting tonight.' Obviously, she is still very committed to keeping up her skills. Dignity for Disability is certainly happy to support the Hon. Tung Ngo's motion wishing our Olympic and Paralympic athletes well, especially our South Australian athletes, of course.

While I was away in Sydney during the Paralympic welcome home parade in Adelaide, I was fortunate to be present at the Adelaide chapter to welcome home our Paralympic athletes. At this year's Rio Olympics, I was particularly pleased to see a refugee team featured for the very first time. The stories of those 10 athletes really resonated, as I am sure they did with many people. Each had their own incredible journey, and I think their involvement in the Olympics is really what the Olympic movement is about. Successive federal governments in this country rail year after year against so-called boat people, yet we are quite happy to celebrate them when they achieve things such as this.

Of course, as a person with disability myself who happens to be more inclined to and indeed understand the arts rather than sport—I appreciate that some people can do both, but unfortunately I missed that gene—I always find the fascination with the Paralympics every four years interesting, to say the least. When the endeavours of people with disabilities are before us on television for roughly four days every four years, all around me express amazement at the abilities of people with disabilities, and not just in track and field, in the water or on the water, on the playing pitch or in the gym, but there are also the artistic feats we see during the opening and closing ceremonies.

The thing is, though, that these sporting and artistic feats are occurring away from the glare of the world media each and every day. Participation in Paralympic sport occurs every day in South Australia by our Paralympic athletes. I get frustrated when we have this 10-day period when it is okay to recognise the achievements of disabled people. We see people with disabilities in advertising campaigns and skits on our televisions—in fact, not always people with disabilities, as there was one particular magazine campaign that used able-bodied models and then photoshopped some limbs off, but that is another story. I wish I was joking—I can see the Hon. Ms Franks laughing in disbelief—but unfortunately I am not making it up.

We certainly have a long way to go in terms of accurate representation of people with disabilities in society and in the media and, while I am glad that the Paralympics can play some role in that, I only wish that we could see this diversity and the true reflection of our modern Australian society on our screens, in our streets and on our stages each and every day. Just thinking about advertising, some members may have seen the fantastic advert that ran around the Paralympics called, 'We are the superhumans.'

While I struggle with the term 'superhumans', it was, quite apart from that, a perfect and beautiful media campaign in which we saw people with disabilities, Paralympic athletes, doing a variety of tasks—everything from their Paralympic sports, and we saw people running in wheelchairs down a basketball court, diving into a swimming pool or whatever it might have been—interspersed with footage of them doing everyday things, such as going grocery shopping or crossing the street or looking after their children, and this was all while a Sammy Davis Jr song called Yes, I can was playing.

The point of that song was not to be what the late Stella Young would call 'inspiration porn', but to actually tackle those negative attitudes, assumptions and misconceptions that people with disabilities come up against each and every day. I think my very favourite scene in that advertising campaign was when a young man was seated in what appeared to be the principal's office. We do not hear the rest of the conversation, but we see him sitting there in the office in his wheelchair, and the person we assume is the principal says, 'Oh, well, I'm sorry, you can't.' They then cut to footage of this young man running down the basketball court at a terrifying speed in his wheelchair screaming, 'Yes, I can.'

So, I think the Paralympics and the Olympics, for all their flaws, are really a great example of the social model of disability, which I am sure members recall me talking about before—the idea that the physical, intellectual or sensory difference, or whatever it may be, in and of itself is not actually the issue. It is the barriers which we as a society erect as a response to that difference which are in fact the issue. If anyone has not checked out that video, I highly recommend it. It is fairly easy to find on YouTube.

You might at first be a little bit uncomfortable with the idea of someone driving a rally car with their feet, but you very quickly get used to it. It is a great example of the social model of disability and one I am very happy to see happening. As I said, I only wish that we did not have to wait for a specific event to accurately portray people with disabilities and, indeed, just the general diversity that exists in our community, be that diversity of physical abilities, diversity of racial differences, backgrounds, genders and so on. I am certainly very happy to be looking toward a society in which we can say that is the case.

Having gone on that flight of fancy, can I now close by congratulating all the Olympians and Paralympians—who have already been mentioned, so I will not go into all of them—in particular, Libby Kosmala for her 12 Paralympic Games. It is an extraordinary achievement, and she obviously is to be commended for the fact that she has not quite retired just yet, given that she was still going out to shooting practice on the evening I saw her, having just come back from Rio. I also congratulate Jocelyn, whom I cannot yet say I know particularly well but, it being Adelaide, I do know her personally.

I have to say that, as has been mentioned, she went into the Paralympics as a paracanoer, and it is my understanding that she only touched a canoe for the first time a few months ago, so she is an extraordinary athlete with obviously not only a great deal of natural talent but also a great deal of perseverance and determination, which has seen her reach great heights of success in a very short time. As much as I said I was just closing, I have just had another reflection, that is, the importance of the Olympics and Paralympics in changing social policy. The Hon. Ms Franks mentioned a couple of great examples of those.

Another that occurred to me just as I was speaking is the Tel Aviv Paralympics at some point in the eighties, if I recall correctly. I saw a presentation recently where there was an old photograph that showed Paralympians being carried up the steps of an aeroplane—obviously those who were wheelchair users or mobility aid users or otherwise needed assistance to get up the steps—to get to the Paralympics from wherever they were leaving. It was, in fact, that event that led to the advent or the widespread use of the assistive equipment we now see used to assist people to get into aeroplanes who cannot use stairs independently or easily.

We really cannot underestimate the impact of sporting events, particularly those as high profile as the Olympics and the Paralympics. As much as they can have their flaws, of course, in terms of the sometimes negative impact they have on hosting countries, they also achieve many positive and far-reaching things in terms of not only the lives of individual athletes and individual nations but also broader social policy changes that impact many people, including people like me who might like to get on a plane to go and see some theatre.

I am very pleased to support this motion on behalf of Dignity for Disability, and I thank the Hon. Mr Ngo for putting it forward. I again thank all our Olympians, including the Paralympians, for what they have achieved in terms of putting our country and our state very much on the world stage in a positive light.

The Hon. T.T. NGO (20:23): I would like to thank the Hon. Terry Stephens, the Hon. Tammy Franks and the Hon. Kelly Vincent for their contribution and their speech about the history, aspirations, dedication and commitment of those Olympians over the years. Some have suffered retribution just because they made a political stand, which at the time might not have been correct, but it was eventually proven that what they stood for was correct, so I thank those members for their contribution.

Motion carried.