2024

“A tough character with a heart of gold”

Helen represented Australia at the Olympic Games (Rome 1960 & Tokyo 1964) and the Commonwealth Games 1958, 1962 and 1966 medalling in the High Jump and Long Jump. She also competed in the Australian Open Championships from 1958 to 1966. In 1987 Helen, as a NSW Masters athlete, was invited to compete in the inaugural ladies’ Hammer at the Open Australian Championships. Helen was an outstanding athlete who progressed from jump events to throwing events as she moved into the master’s age groups.

Helen joined NSWVAC for the 1975-6 season winning the W35 Shot Put in her first State Championships. She went on to compete in 25 NSWMA Championships where she won a multitude of medals. Moving to Queensland in 2002 Helen went on to compete for 17 years and over 9 QLD Championships winning 37 gold medals, never losing an event. Competing in the Australian Masters Athletics Championships since 1978, Helen had podium finishes in all but three events over 30 championships.

Helen was the recipient of the Royce Foley Award for best Throws Pentathlon performance on four occasions and Female Thrower of the Meet at the AMA Winter Throws competition, also on four occasions. A successful multi-event athlete, Helen participated in ten World Masters Athletics Championships and two World Masters Games across all age groups from W35 to W80.

Competing in a wide variety of events—long, high & triple jumps; short hurdles, hammer, discus, shot put and the field and throws pentathlons, Helen set numerous World and Australian records. She has been dedicated to the sport of athletics, in particular to the throwing events and athletes with a disability where she has coached three disabled athletes to International competition standards.

Helen was honoured with an Order of Australia Medal in 1999 for service to athletics as a coach, administrator and athlete along with a Life Membership of Athletics NSW.

 

“Resilient, Motivator and Role Model”

Talent identified for basketball at the age of nine, Julie quickly progressed from a local to State A grade player in both women’s and men’s competition. In 1996 Julie took up basketball refereeing where she again progressed rapidly from local to State then to the Australian Basketball League and the WNBL panel. Spotted in a Little Athletics parents race by coach Jimmy Huggins, Julie was invited to join his athletics training squad. For Julie this was a way to maintain her fitness for refereeing.

In 2002, coach Huggins entered Julie in a special Masters 100m at the Australian Open Track Classic where she placed second, at the same event in the following year she competed in the 200m this time taking first place ahead of some well renowned masters athletes. Joining QMA in 2004 Julie regularly competed in all events from the 60m through to the 800m along with the javelin, shotput and discus. That year, competing in her first Pan Pacific Games she set records in the 60m, 100m, 400m and 400m hurdles.

A regular competitor at these Games Julie currently holds eleven records. Having competed in 13 AMA Championships since her first in 2005 Julie holds 11 championship records and has received AMA awards for Multi Events, Age-graded Sprint/Hurdles, Sprint/Hurdles (3 times), Female Athlete of the Year, Outstanding Individual Performance and Multi Events/relay. Julie has competed in 6 WMA Outdoor Championships and 3 WMA Indoor Championships, she has never finished off the podium in any event in which she competed at these Championships.

In 2017 Julie was the runner-up for the WMA Sprint/Hurdles Athlete of the Year and 2021 was a nominee for the Best Female Athlete. In Finland 2022 was selected to be flag bearer for the Australian team. In 2019 Julie served as a Committee member for Queensland Masters Athletics.

Honouring past and present Maryborough citizens who have achieved a high distinction in their chosen field, Julie’s home town inducted her into the Maryborough ‘Walk of Achievers’ in 2023; laying a plaque, alongside a number of Olympians, bearing her name and her sport of World Masters Athletics into the footpath.