Olympic diver Chantelle Newbery sentenced to jail

Olympic gold medallist and Order of Australia winner Chantelle Newbery has been sentenced to jail in a southeast Queensland court for shoplifting, but the items she stole weren’t high-end fashion items or electrical goods.

OLYMPIC gold medallist Chantelle Newbery is focusing on “re-establishing her life” after she was caught stealing Christmas decorations, food, antihistamines and eczema cream.

Newbery was on top of the world after winning gold at the 2004 Olympic Games and had been inducted into the Australian Institute of Sport’s “Best of the Best” and was awarded the Order of Australia.

Chantelle Newbery competes at the 2004 Athens Olympics.

ATHENS - AUGUST 22: Chantelle Newbery of Australia acknowledges the crowd after receiving her gold medal for the women's diving 10 metre platform event on August 22, 2004 during the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games at the Aquatic Centre Indoor Pool at the Olympic Sports Complex in Athens, Greece. (Photo by Daniel Berehulak/Getty Images for FINA)

But on Thursday, the 41-year-old was just another person in the dock of the Toowoomba Magistrates Court where she pleaded guilty to two counts of failing to appear in court and to another eight mainly shoplifting offences, committed in Brisbane and Toowoomba.

Newbery stole Christmas decorations, food, antihistamines and eczema cream from supermarkets and clothes from Target and Myer.

Chantelle Newbery said she wants to start over. Picture: Marc Robertson

Her lawyer Robert Burns told The Courier-Mail outside of court that Newbery wanted to move on after serving 13 days in custody before appearing in court on Thursday, where she was released on parole.

“We’re not talking about jewellery and luxury items, we’re talking about stuff people need to get by on a daily basis,” Mr Burns said.

“She is very focused on re-establishing her life.

“I think if she approaches her rehabilitation with half the effort that she used to get the gold medal, them I’m sure she’s going to overcome these problems.”

He said her time in custody was “dreadful”, but her ex-partner Robert Newbery — a fellow diver and Olympian — was supportive.

“She is dreadfully distressed about the impact this is having on the children,” Mr Burns said.

The court was told Newbery was so distressed over the death of her mother in 2012 she turned to morphine and her life spiralled out of control.

Magistrate Viviana Keegan declared the 13 days pre-sentence custody as time served and sentenced Newbery to three months in jail but ordered she be released on parole immediately.

Seven other shoplifting type charges Newbery is facing arising from alleged incidents in the Brisbane area were transferred to the Brisbane Magistrates Court for mention on December 10.