Kieren Perkins: Sally Pearson doesn’t have to carry the flag to play her part
SALLY Pearson won’t be miffed in any way at not being chosen as flagbearer, says KIEREN PERKINS, and may yet get her moment in the limelight at these Games.
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SALLY Pearson has too stable a personality to be miffed in any way at not being chosen as flagbearer for the opening ceremony because there is universal recognition she richly deserves it, just at another moment in time.
Might it even take a little pressure off home town Sally, maybe, but I’ve got this feeling she is going to have a role to play in Wednesday night’s grand opening in a different way.
I mean, Sally has virtually been a one-woman promotion for the Games since the closing ceremony of the 2014 edition in Glasgow because she is in just about every conversation about what it means to host on the Gold Coast.
Hockey’s Mark Knowles is a very worthy choice as flagbearer and the cheer I heard for him from hundreds of Australian team members at the announcement reception on Monday night showed it was popular.
I’m sure with the whispers of speculation before the announcement Sally may have dared to dream it might be her but there will have been no disappointment, just delight for Mark, who has been on the same Games adventure as Sally through Melbourne (2006), Delhi (2010) and Glasgow (2014).
It’s amusing. People like to paint everything these days as a contest but being picked as flagbearer is not one.
Athletes in every discipline at these Games train to win medals, break records and do personal bests.
No one sets out to be a flagbearer.
That great unexpected honour plays its own tricks as Mark will find out — just as I did when thrilled with being asked to carry the flag for the opening ceremony at the 1998 Kuala Lumpur Commonweath Games.
I was more nervous than for many of my races because when you train at a speciality you have a good idea of what you are going to deliver and you have experience behind you.
I never imagined getting the flagbearer honour so there I was thinking “don’t trip or fall”, “What happens if the old arm can’t hold the flag up forever?” or “Are my swimmer’s legs up to a few hours on my feet?”
To have the chance to lead out your country into a stadium under the Australian flag is beyond incredible and I felt part of a very privileged group at the reception where Games organisers had gathered 14 flagbearers across the years to add to the Games culture around the current athletes.
I met Pam Kilburn (1970 Edinburgh) and spent time speaking with Lisa Curry (1990 Auckland) and Ian Hale (1994 Victoria).
The flagbearing experience rated near the top of the pops for me because it was not about touching the wall first but what other people thought of me.
Mark is a Rockhampton boy, a respected captain, not a big-noting name, and will show the best of leadership of the team and behaviour.
Enjoy it Mark. And see how high and long you can hold that flag.
If all goes to plan, maybe we will all be celebrating with Sally as closing ceremony flagbearer.
Originally published as Kieren Perkins: Sally Pearson doesn’t have to carry the flag to play her part