Cathy Freeman biography
Cathy Freeman, byname of Catherine Astrid Salome Freeman, (born February 16, 1973, Mackay, Queensland, Australia), Australian sprinter who excelled within the 400-metre sprint and who in 2000 turned the primary Australian Aboriginal particular person to win a person Olympic gold medal.
Freeman started aggressive operating on the recommendation of her stepfather. At age 17 she gained a gold medal on the 1990 Commonwealth Games as a member of the 4 × 100-metre relay group and was named Young Australian of the Year. In 1992 she turned the primary Australian Aboriginal particular person to compete within the Olympic Games. Although she didn't win a medal, Freeman’s profile continued to develop, and he or she introduced new consideration to Aboriginal folks, who had traditionally encountered discrimination. At the 1994 Commonwealth Games she captured gold medals within the 400-metre and 200-metre races, setting a nationwide document within the 200 metres at 22.2 seconds, and in addition gained a silver medal within the 4 × 100-metre relay. A succession of spectacular victories in 1995, together with a uncommon win in opposition to rival Marie-José Pérec of France, earned Freeman the quantity two world rating for 400 metres. She held that rating the next 12 months, when she turned the primary Australian lady to interrupt 50 seconds at 400 metres, which she did seven instances in race finals.
At the 1996 Olympic Games, in what was thought of one of many best 400-metre matches, Freeman and Pérec led the sphere and had been neck and neck down the ultimate straightaway till Pérec outkicked Freeman, leaving her with a silver medal. Freeman completed the 1996 season with a string of Grand Prix victories at 400 metres, and, after a short layoff, she returned to kind in 1997 with the 12 months’s quickest 400-metre time when she clocked 49.39 seconds at Oslo in July. At the world championships, with Pérec a no-show, Freeman gained the 400-metre gold in 49.77 seconds to retain her primary world rating.
Popular each on and off the observe, Freeman gained the distinguished Australian of the Year honour in 1998. Two years later she captured her second world championship title within the 400-metre race. For the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, she was chosen to mild the Olympic flame through the opening ceremony, an act some thought to be a transfer towards Aboriginal reconciliation (see Cathy Freeman: The Heart of a Nation). Under excessive expectations, Freeman went on to win a gold medal within the 400 metres. During her victory lap, she carried each the Australian nationwide flag and the native Aboriginal flag. In 2000 she additionally gained a number of Grand Prix titles at 400 metres. Freeman didn't compete in 2001, however she was a part of the 4 × 400-metre relay group that gained a gold medal on the 2002 Commonwealth Games. She retired from skilled competitors in 2003. In 2007 Freeman established the Catherine Freeman Foundation, a nonprofit group that focuses on Indigenous kids in Australia.