Remember When? (Part III)

Remember when Australian Cathy Freeman won the 400m in Sydney in 2000? I think a lot of people may have forgotten this because she's a) not American and b) the Sydney Olympics were a hard watch time zone wise for us. During Sydney, you knew almost everything that had happened that day when you woke up that morning.

For those that have forgotten, this was an incredibly significant moment in Australia. Just a week or so before Freeman was the one to light the cauldron in the opening ceremony. This represented a lot in that country because Freeman is an Aboriginal. (Quick history lesson, Aborigines are the indigenous people of Australia. Like Native Americans, Aboriginal Australians were not always treated with the upmost respect once European colonization began in that country.)

Freeman being chosen to light the cauldron was a historical moment in itself. But when she won the 400m, she became the first Aboriginal Australian to win an individual gold medal. After she won, she carried both the Australian and Aboriginal flags around the track in front of the largest crowd to ever witness a track meet in Australia. All of them cheering for her. Australians will still talk about how unifying of a moment this was in their history. She carried the weight of an entire nation on her shoulders in this race and came out on top.

I read a farewell piece by a Washington Post columnist several years ago who talked about all the incredible sports moments he's covered throughout his career. He said he's often asked his favorite moment. He said that he doesn't have one favorite but the only time he was left to write behind tears was the night Cathy Freeman won gold in Sydney.

This story continues now as many of the athletes that are competing for Australia in Rio were children watching this moment. Freeman was the one that inspired them and proved to them that anyone can accomplish a dream no matter your heritage, background or circumstance.