FORMER OLYMPIAN CATHY FREEMAN, SP SPORTS AWARDS 2008
GUEST SPEAKER

RENOWNED Olympian and former Australian athlete Catherine (Cathy) Freeman will be the guest speaker at the 2008 SP Sports Awards scheduled for Saturday 24 th May 2008.

According to chairperson of the 2008 SP Sports Awards Organising Committtee Mrs Auvita Rapilla, it is an honour to have an Olympian great such as Cathy Freeman come to PNG for the prestigious SP Sports Awards.

“As this is an Olympic year, it is such as an honour to have Freeman visit PNG and be our guest speaker. The committee has always wanted to have her in the past but her heavily schedule did not allow her to come up.”

Mrs Rapilla added that Freeman’s trip is made possible by the major sponsor of the SP Sports Awards, SP Brewery in partnership with Ausaid and the backing of Air Niugini and Crowne Plaza Port Moresby.

Born in Mackay, Queensland on 16 February 1973, Freeman was the first female Australian Aboriginal to win a gold medal at an international athletics event at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand, when she was 16 years old; as a member of the 4 x 100 metres relay team. She was also the first Australian Aboriginal to represent Australia at an Olympics when she was chosen to compete in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.

Since then, her athletic career had grown from strength to strength. She competed in Commonwealth Games, World Athletic Championships and the Olympics.

After representing Australia in numerous international competitions and bagging many medals, Freeman decided to hang her sprint shoes in July 2003.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------For more information on this Media Release contact:

Marlene Samar on Tel: (675) 325 1411 Fax: (675) 325 1851 Email: msamar@pngsfoc.org.pg msamar@pngsfoc.org.pg msamar@pngsfoc.org msamar@pngfoc.org.pg