Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I too take the opportunity to speak on this motion in congratulating our Australian Olympic athletes. I do congratulate them because I believe they did our country proud. They literally flew the flag for Australia on the world stage and they did us proud by their performances. Regardless of whether they won a medal or not, I believe their collective performance is something that indeed we can all be proud of. In saying that I extend the same respect and acknowledgement to every athlete who competed in the Olympics as I have little doubt that just as Australians want to see Australian athletes do well, so too do the people of the respective countries which each athlete represents.

The Olympics is indeed a contest of the best of the best in terms of athletic performance. The pressure on athletes to do well has never been greater; firstly, because with today's media coverage most of the world is looking on and, secondly, because of the national expectations which arise from governments investing substantial funds into Olympic preparations. To be selected for the Australian team is an outstanding achievement. To then win a medal is extraordinary; even more so considering the comparative investment in preparing athletes that is made by many other countries, the very fine line between winning performances in so many events, the reality that some competitors are assisted by performance-enhancing drugs, knowing that peak performance must coincide with the time of your event and knowing that every athlete has good and bad days—and also knowing that there is no second chance.

Disappointingly, the games are being used by some for both political supremacy and political opportunism, with claims that some athletes face political consequences if they fail to win while others, as we saw again in London, using the games to flee from their own country. The killing of the Israeli athletes in Munich in 1972 has left an irremovable stain on the games. None of this is what the Olympic Games, or sports more broadly, is meant to be about. Yet by elevating the games to the level that we have, and putting the global spotlight on them as the world has done over the years, we have equally made them a prime target for international displays of political dissent or political opportunism.

In keeping with the Olympic spirit, it was wonderful to see so many primary schools around the country organising their own mini Olympics and, in so doing, providing opportunities for so many children to have a go at Olympic-type sports events. In my own electorate I visited and formally opened the mini Olympic Games at Keller Road Primary School at Salisbury East where the children imitated every aspect of the opening ceremony, from carrying the Olympic torch and lighting the cauldron to parading the teams, with each team flying their respective flag prior to the games commencement. The games then began, and each athlete was given the opportunity to participate in a wide range of events. It was terrific to see the children embrace the Olympic spirit with their colours and their costumes.

I commend Susan Podger, the principal of the school, and all of the staff, students, parents and grandparents who organised and supported the children's events on the day. It was not only fantastic to see the kids' excitement in being part of their own Olympics but also great to see them trying events that they would probably never, ever get another opportunity to do. And in getting into that Olympic spirit perhaps one day they might pursue a particular event they had tried on the day and maybe represent our country at the real Olympics in the future.

Last Friday week I was invited to Prescott North Primary School, where Telstra had organised a 30-minute live cross to London. Two of Australia's gold-medal winners, Libby Trickett and Melanie Schlanger, had made themselves available to have a direct talk about the Olympics to the school students. Using today's technology and a huge outdoor screen so that everyone present could watch, students were able to have a face-to-face discussion with Libby and Melanie, hear about their experiences and ask them questions about competing in the Olympics in London. The clear message from Libby and Melanie was to stay true to your dreams, give it your best, make sacrifices and never give up.

Students were also able to meet and speak with past gold and silver medallist, Brooke Hanson, who attended on the day as a Telstra Olympic ambassador. Speaking and hearing from Brooke, Libby, and Melanie must have been an incredibly inspiring and motivating opportunity for the children, and I commend Telstra for the effort that they went to to organise the direct link-up with Libby and Melanie from London to have literally a face-to-face opportunity for the children to speak to them. Again, I hope that it might just have given to the students that extra inspiration that they might have been looking for to persevere and continue with their own sports involvement. Hopefully, they too might one day represent Australia in the Olympics. I also commend all of the staff, parents and organisers who made that day possible for the students at the Prescott North Primary School.

There has been some disappointing public commentary from some sectors that has been critical of Australia's medal performance. Such commentary is neither warranted nor helpful, and usually made through ignorance. Nevertheless, there have been calls to increase funding levels for elite Australian athletes so that we can fare better on the world stage in the future. My own view has always been that the early years are just as important as the latter years, and that if more support is required then the priority should be more support for the local community facilities which do all of the preparation in the junior years.

Secondly, the athletes most admired, and who reflect all of the qualities which epitomise sport, are those who made it through long-term sacrifice, tortuous work and unswerving commitment. In essence, it is those athletes who do it because of their own desire, hard work and determination who I personally admire the most. Good facilities and good coaching are important; but I am not convinced that current support for elite athletes is inadequate, nor do I want to see gold medals won that should be more appropriately awarded to training institutions than to athletes. In my view there are more important priorities for the expenditure of public funds. The understandable joy that we can bring to a relatively few number of people by investing millions of dollars more each year into elite athletes pales into insignificance when compared with the joy that can be brought to so many more people by directing those same funds into medical research and medical services.

I take this opportunity to make some other observations about the games. The Olympics have become a major international commercial opportunity, so much so that the costs involved and the expectation that each Olympics will be bigger and better than the last makes today's Olympics in total cost across the world a multibillion-dollar event. At some point the realism must set in that we cannot continue raising the standard without serious consequences. If there is huge money at stake there is also the increased likelihood of corruption, and there has also been some allegations related to that.

A separate concern about the cost and commercialisation of the games is that poorer countries will continue to miss out on hosting the games—they simply cannot raise the funds or meet the expectations of what is required for a modern-day Olympic Games. None of this is in keeping with the Olympic spirit or sportsmanship.

I conclude by again congratulating the Australian athletes for winning their 35 medals. They did themselves, their coaches, their families and their country proud. To those that will compete again in future events, I wish them the best for the future. I also congratulate the USA on once again leading the world in the medal count. And I congratulate the UK and the city of London for hosting such a wonderful spectacle. Lastly, I extend my best wishes to the paralympians who commence their games in the next week or so. I have no doubt that they too will do Australia proud.

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