1st June, 2012
Cathy Freeman believes hurdler Sally Pearson has the head and shoulders to bear the enormous weight of expectation placed on her as Australia’s athletics standard-bearer and is ready to write her own fairytale at the London Olympics.
Australia’s last champion on the Olympic track, Freeman has acted as an informal mentor to 25-year-old world champion Pearson, who owns the year’s fastest time in the 100m hurdles and will head to London as hot favourite to win gold.
Australian track and field champions have become a rare breed in recent decades and Pearson shoulders the burden of her country’s hopes of an athletics gold at London.
The form struggles of other would-be contenders, including pole vaulter Steve Hooker, Australia’s only athletics champion at the 2008 Beijing Games, has only cranked up the attention.
Pearson has frequently recalled watching transfixed as Freeman stormed home to win gold and has lauded her compatriot as an inspiring role-model in dealing with big-race nerves in the lead-up to London.
Freeman, who will be in London working as a brand ambassador, said she would return the favour as one of Pearson’s loudest cheerleaders, but suggested there was little wisdom she could impart to the runner.
“It would seem so far in her campaign that she’s on track, excuse the pun. She’s got a really good head on her shoulders,” said Freeman.
“She seems to have the makings of that fairytale story ending come London but it all remains to be seen.
“I haven’t had Sally calling me up at one in the morning telling me, ‘Oh my God, I think I’m losing the plot.’
“She’s got such a wonderful ability to focus and really keep her life simple and effective.
“I make myself available but ultimately these athletes, especially athletes like Sally, are so self-driven and so self-motivated that there aren’t really a lot of issues that I can actually have an input into.”