They take the kids to training and the game, they wash the teams jumpers, they volunteer in the canteen, cater for special events or they fill a role at their local club, taxi their kids around and they still find the time to cheer them on from the sidelines...Legend Mums!
01 October 2008
Mother's Day was extra special this year for the mums of some of Western Australia's favourite athletes, who were recognised as Legend Mums by their children and the Department of Sport and Recreation.
DSR teamed up with athletes training at the Western Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS) to recognise of the role mums play in helping their children participate and achieve in their chosen sport as part of its Local Legends campaign. The campaign aims to increase awareness of the value of sport and recreation and the great people who make participation in community clubs possible.
Research shows that kids who participate in sport and recreation do better at school, families that are involved in clubs are closer, clubs make our communities happier and safer places and that people who are actively involved in clubs are mentally healthier.
Kylie Wheeler and 'Legend
Mum' Kathy
Kathy has earned the ‘Legend Mum' title through the many years of encouragement, support and running around she has done to help heptathlete Kylie achieve in her sport, and her help has certainly paid off. Kylie was chosen to compete at the Beijing Olympics.
Kylie says it was her parents' encouragement that saw her start in
sport at a young age.
"I got into Little Athletics when I was eight because they enrolled me,
obviously at that age it wasn't my decision. But I loved it from the beginning
and they encouraged me to have a go at everything and just enjoy myself," she
said. "I think mum was really good at not pushing and just encouraging."
Kylie's dad died when she was 13, and Kathy has since worked hard to be both mum and dad for her and her disabled older brother Johnno.
Kathy said she had initially started Kylie in sport for the social aspects more than anything else.
"She just enjoyed it. she never came first all the time, maybe second or third but Kylie wanted to do well and I kept pointing out to her, you've got the abilities, your brother doesn't, use them," Kathy said.
Kylie said her mum was definitely worthy of Legend status.
"I don't know if I've ever done it when she's been there, but quite often I thank my mum in my speech because she's been my inspiration," Kylie said. "She became my mum and my dad when I was 13 and people often say ‘how do you do it Kylie, you've had so many hard times?' but I haven't really because mum's taken the brunt and the workload to allow me to do what I need to do and not encroach on my life.
"We are who we are as people because of our parents and how they mould us and I think I've got the persistence to hang in there for at least what mum's been through and make the most out of life."
While Kylie wasn't home on Mother's Day due to training commitments, her mum said cheering her on in Beijing, was the best gift of all.
"I've always wanted Kylie to do her best, whether she was the garbage collector or the shop assistant, that's my motto and if Kylie achieves her Personal Best at the Beijing Olympics and doesn't win a medal, you couldn't get a prouder mum," Kathy said.
Tim Castles and 'Legend
Mum' Wendy
Tim has his sights set on competing at the London Olympics in 2012
and says if it wasn't for the support of his parents, particularly his 'Legend
Mum' Wendy, his sporting career would not have been smooth sailing.
"Sailing is a pretty expensive sport, so they forked out a lot of cash to get
me places, they've flown around the world to places like Singapore, South
Africa and Ireland," Tim said. "Taking the
boats as well as people can work out quite expensive."
Tim was introduced to sailing through a friend, and Wendy said she had been happy for her son to get involved in the sport.
"We live very close to the river and I always thought that would be very lovely when my boys got old enough to have them learn to sail. We were keen for Tim to participate and he took to it very quickly, so that was the end of the rest of our lives," Wendy joked.
Tim said his mum has been a good sport throughout his career.
"There's a lot of running around involved, you have to drag the boat from yacht club to yacht club," Tim said. "When we're in big regattas we can have five or six hours on the water at a time and there's a term we use called a Regatta Mum, and they make your dinner when you come back in because you're usually pretty tired after sitting in the sun for six hours, especially if its windy you've been working very hard."
Wendy even took her role as a Regatta Mum to extra lengths, often taking other children along on interstate trips. She and her husband are also involved in regatta management.
"When you're a Regatta Mum you often have other people's kids as well so there are quite a few of the young ones around Tim's age that I consider my own kids because we had them with us when we travelled around the countryside," Wendy said.
"Every year they have the nationals in a different capital city so we've been around the country a couple of times and we usually take a couple of extra kids with us."
Tim has recently returned from six months interstate and overseas and says he is taking some time to recuperate and recharge physically, mentally and financially before gearing back up again in the lead-up to the London Olympics.
"Whatever he wants, that's what we like to help him achieve — his full potential," Wendy said. "Even if he doesn't get there at least he's had the opportunity to give it his best shot."
Amber Bradley and 'Legend Mum' Sue
Amber, who was selected to compete in her second Olympics in Beijing, took up rowing through her school at age
14. She said it would have been impossible for her to achieve what she had
without the help of her 'Legend Mum' Sue, who was a good sport when it came to
taking her to training.
"I remember when I first wanted to take up rowing mum wanted the weekends to be
free of commitments, so she was happy to run myself and my brother around
Monday to Friday, early, late, before school, after school, but the weekends
were family time," Amber said.
"I didn't actually tell her at first that the rowing regattas were on Saturdays, and I tried out for rowing and didn't really think I'd get in anyway, but then my name was on the shortlist so I had to tell mum, ‘By the way I just found out the competitions are on Saturday mornings'.
"She said, ‘OK, I'll do Saturday mornings but Sundays are definitely out'. During that first season there were no Sundays but gradually as I was getting better and training increased Sunday mornings came into it and Saturday afternoons."
On weekdays, Sue would take Amber from Ferndale to Canning Bridge for 5.30 am training sessions, go home, have breakfast, get ready for work, pick Amber up, drop her off to school, then go to work.
Over the years, she also pitched in with fundraising efforts, from shoveling manure into bags in to help get Amber and other athletes to overseas competitions, selling everything from chocolates to toothbrushes and t-shirts and helping out with various fundraising dinners, breakfasts, sausage sizzles, quiz nights and movie nights.
Sue even moved out of her Ferndale home of about nine years to Mt Pleasant so that Amber could be closer to the river where she trained twice a day. A couple of months later, Amber moved to Canberra for four years, but Sue has no regrets about the move.
Amber said her mum was definitely worthy of Legend status.
"Obviously, I wouldn't be here without her and I wouldn't have achieved what I have without her. I'm so lucky that both mum and dad never put any pressure on me at all, in fact mum's quite often the opposite saying, ‘You poor thing you're training too much, I think you should have a day off' and I have to say, ‘Look mum, if I had a day off every time I was tired there's no way I would achieve what I have, or what I want to'."
While Amber had left for six weeks of training in Europe and wasn't home on Mother's Day, her mum was looking forward to cheering her on in Beijing.
In fact, Sue has outnumbered Amber three to two in the number of Olympic games she has attended.
"This will be my third Olympics, it's amazing, Sydney, Athens and now Beijing, who ever would have thought?" Sue said. "When you have a child you never ever think this is going to happen ... it's definitely been worth it."
Lara Carroll and 'Legend Mum' Heather
Lara enjoyed a stellar career before recently announcing her retirement from competitive swimming, and she owes much of her success to her 'Legend Mum' Heather.
Lara's achievements have included representing Australia at the Athens Olympics and a Commonwealth Games, and winning a World Championships bronze medal, all of which Lara says she could not have achieved without her mum's support.
"Every morning when I'd go to training she'd get up with me and
make me some toast. Even after I got my licence she'd still get up and make
sure I had everything, and she'd have dinner all ready when I got back from
training," Lara said.
"She's an avid supporter, she'll tell anyone who'll listen about sport and
swimming. I'm so appreciative and I love her very much. She's done so much for
me not just in swimming but in life as well. I would definitely classify her as
a Legend."
Heather, who teaches French at Leeming Senior High School and Manning Primary School, said she felt privileged to have been part of Lara's swimming career.
"It's been great to have that special relationship and involvement," Heather said. "Bringing up Lara has been a huge part of our lives, so swimming has been a huge part of it as well and we've embraced it and there have been huge rewards for doing that."
Lara said even before she was born, her mum had shown great dedication to her wellbeing.
"I was born two months premature and for eight weeks before I was born, mum had to lie flat on her back and be in complete bed rest, so even then she showed that dedication to make sure I got here," Lara said.
