Sam Kerr, Margot Robbie among Australia’s 60 most influential

A prestigious list of influential Australians has been revealed, with a number of impressive young women meeting the very strict criteria.

What do a tennis ace, a Hollywood actor, a football star and a tech entrepreneur have in common?

Aside from their shared, down-to-earth Australian humility, Ash Barty, Sam Kerr, Margot Robbie, and Melanie Perkins are celebrated as the youngest inductees on The Australian’s list of The 60 Most Influential People of the Past Six Decades. And yes, they are all exceptional young women.

The list, available exclusively online now before being released in a special glossy magazine in The Weekend Australian on July 13, includes those the masthead considers to have shaped our nation in the past 60 years, since the paper was first printed. But power, popularity or politics alone don’t guarantee a place on this list.

There has to be something more: the ability to change the way we think, work, dream or play.

These four young women have met that criteria.

Ash Barty has won three Grand Slams, Wimbledon, and been world number 1. Picture: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

But her ‘greatest achievement’ is her son Hayden, pictured here. Picture : Instagram

First, there’s Barty, 28, who, despite having three Grand Slams and a Wimbledon win under her belt, tells The Australian that her greatest achievement in life is “without doubt, my son”.

The former world No. 1, who in 2022 was recognised with the Order of Australia medal, may have hung up her racquet at just 25, but she’s determined to spend the rest of her life inspiring “young boys and girls to dream big and believe their dreams are possible”.

As for who has been the greatest influence on Barty? That would be Wimbledon champion Evonne Goolagong Cawley and Olympic gold medal runner Cathy Freeman, “for not only what they achieved as athletes but how they have contributed to communities all around Australia.”

Sam Kerr’s inclusion on the prestigious list speaks volumes. Picture: Izhar Khan / AFP

Then there is Sam Kerr. It’s no surprise that a nation that adores its sports would honour its most respected athletes.

But a moment of honesty: would a woman’s football player have been honoured like this a decade ago?

Kerr’s inclusion on this list speaks volumes about her impact.

The Australian captain, whose left calf injury kept the world on edge leading up to the 2023 World Cup, has driven women’s football to unprecedented levels of exposure.

The Matildas’ semi-final loss to England, heartbreaking as it was, became the most-watched television program since Cathy Freeman’s historic Sydney Olympics win in 2000, drawing an audience of around 7 million.

Margot Robbie’s film Barbie created a cultural moment. Picture: Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Speaking of drawing in massive audiences, one word … Barbie.

At a time when box office numbers are struggling, Margot Robbie managed to craft a hit from an irrelevant plastic doll.

The film, which grossed $1.4 billion globally — the highest of last year — was rescued from a decade-long limbo by Robbie through her production company, LuckyChap, which has released Oscar-winning hits such as I, Tonya and Promising Young Woman.

Robbie tells The Australian that she founded LuckyChap with the idea of “championing other female creatives both in front of and behind the camera”.

While Robbie has lost herself in memorable roles like Harley Quinn and Sharon Tate, she still feels Australian to the core.

“It’s just who I am. Every part of my upbringing informed the person I am today.”

As for who she would nominate as an influential Australian: “Is it too cringe to say my mum?!”

Barbie grossed $1.4 billion globally. Picture: Justin Tallis / AFP

Lastly, Melanie Perkins, co-founder of Canva, has revolutionised graphic design with a company now valued at $39 billion.

Alongside Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams, Perkins launched Canva a decade ago, not without some serious grunt work.

Perkins spent three months in 2012 living on the floor of her brother’s San Francisco apartment, commuting daily to Silicon Valley to pitch her idea.

It’s worth noting that she secured one of her first investors, Bill Tai, by learning to kitesurf — after discovering that many investors used it as a networking opportunity.

Though Perkins’ kitesurfing days are behind her, Canva’s intuitive platform continues to democratise graphic design globally, sparing us from the grind of memorising countless counterintuitive Photoshop keyboard shortcuts.