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women in sport

50. TALLISHA HARDEN

Before Tallisha Harden represented Australia in three sports, she was a self-confessed book nerd who played in the school brass band and was better at ten pin bowling than ball sports.

Growing up, Tallisha suffered from chronic middle ear infections which meant she stayed on the sidelines of most sports. But she was tall, so when a teacher picked her out to join the local volleyball team, Tallisha said yes, unknowingly starting her career in sport.

Tallisha represented Australia in volleyball and Rugby 7’s before switching to rugby league where she’s at the top of her game as a Jillaroo and Brisbane Bronco in the NRLW.

Tallisha joins host Sam Squiers to discuss growing up in Woodridge in Brisbane’s Logan area, how she educated herself about her Indigenous culture, her passion for speech pathology and what she wants the future to look like for the NRLW.

49. ALEX BLACKWELL

When officials told Alex Blackwell that being gay created an “image problem” for her sport, she refused to hide or back down.

Instead, by standing up as a proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Alex has changed the game for women in sport.

On the field Alex set the record for the most number of games played by an Australian woman, which was only recently surpassed by Ellyse Perry. She is an Ashes and World Cup winning captain and the inaugural captain of the Sydney Thunder WBBL side.

Alex joins host Sam Squiers to discuss growing up idolising cricket legend Belinda Clarke before ending up as her teammate, the changes she’s seen cricket go through in its attitude towards female and LGBTQIA+ players and whether being gay held her back from leadership positions.

44. SHAYNA JACK

Proving her innocence against claims she took performance enhancing drugs has been one of the toughest fights of Shayna Jack’s career. But now that she’s back in the pool, Shayna is ready to do whatever it takes to reach the top again.

Shayna Jack is a Commonwealth Games gold medallist but in 2019, at the peak of her career, Shayna’s world came crashing down when a banned substance was found in a routine drug test. Shayna spent the next two and a half years and over $100,000 proving her innocence before she was finally allowed to swim again this year.

Shayna joins host Sam Squiers to discuss winning gold in a star-studded relay team at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, training with legendary coach Dean Boxall, the lengths she went to to prove her innocence and her resolve to reach the peak of her swimming career again in spite of the years she spent out of the pool.

43. KATRINA GORRY

How do you balance a career as a professional athlete and your own desire to become a mum? Matildas and Brisbane Roar player Katrina Gorry wanted both and now she’s successfully navigating returning to sport with her newborn daughter.

Katrina Gorry joined the W League as a teenager. Since then she’s played for teams in Japan, Norway and the United States and she was part of the Matildas team for the Rio Olympics. But the international sporting life has also taken its toll on Katrina, leaving her exhausted and battling an eating disorder.

Katrina joins host Sam Squiers to discuss supporting, and being supported by, her younger brother with Down Syndrome, Dylan, the growth of the Matildas, overcoming her eating disorder through pregnancy and her decision to become a single mum to her daughter Harper.

42. SINEAD DIVER

Have you ever thought…maybe I’m naturally gifted at a sport but I just haven’t found the right one? That’s the incredible story of Olympian Sinead Diver.

Sinead ran her first marathon in 2014 in a time that qualified her for the Beijing World Championships. Since then she has placed 5th at the New York Marathon, set the course record for the Melbourne Marathon and finished 10th at the Tokyo Games earlier this year. But Irish-born Sinead didn’t pick up competitive running until her 30’s after having two kids.

41. CHARLOTTE CASLICK

After winning gold at the Rio Olympics, Charlotte Caslick became a household name overnight. She was on the cover of Vogue (twice!), her Instagram exploded and at one point she was trending higher than Usain Bolt. Charlotte joins host Sam Squiers to discuss the ongoing battle for equality between the men’s and women’s sides, the disappointment of losing to Fiji in the quarter finals of the Tokyo Games compared to the thrill of winning gold at Rio and living on a farm and raising cattle with her partner Lewis.

40. JANA PITTMAN

As a two-time Olympian, two-time World Champion and four-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist, Jana Pittman dominated athletics throughout the 2000’s. In 2014 Jana swapped the athletics track for the bobsleigh track to become the first Australian woman to compete in both the Summer and Winter Olympics. But her career was also plagued with injury and unrelenting criticism from the media. Jana joins host Sam Squiers to discuss the tag of “Drama Jana” which followed Jana throughout her career, the fictional rivalry between Jana and her good friend and teammate, returning to athletics after the birth of her first kid and transitioning to life as a doctor.

39. STEPHANIE MOORHOUSE

Training through injury, body shaming and delayed puberty were just some of the challenges that faced retired gymnast Stephanie Moorhouse throughout her career from the age of 4 to 18. At the height of her career, Steph would train up to 40 hours per week which saw her win a gold medal at the 2002 Commonwealth Games, a bronze medal at the 2003 World Championships and compete at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Steph joins host Sam Squiers to discuss the demands on young gymnasts who peak in their teen years, transitioning to life after elite sport and her response to the Australian Human Rights Commission report into gymnastics which revealed a culture of abuse, misconduct and bullying.

37. ROSIE KING – The Puma Fearless Series

CEO of Netball Victoria and Melbourne Vixens, Rosie King OAM wants to see the Suncorp Super Netball competition expand and provide more opportunities for elite netballers. Rosie has held leadership roles in some of Australia and New Zealand’s largest companies and joins Sam Squiers to discuss getting her first taste of CEO leadership at the Geelong Football Club, changing misconceptions about netball and what needs to happen for the Super Netball competition to grow.

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