Olympic champion Jodie Henry is loving life out of the limelight

AFTER three Olympic finals, three gold medals and three world records, swimmer Jodie Henry has been happy to shun the limelight and help raise a family.

Triple Olympic gold medallist Jodie Henry at home in Brisbane.

THREE Olympic finals. Three gold medals. Three world records. This was the stunning tale of glory for Brisbane freestyler Jodie Henry at the 2004 Athens Olympics. After marrying former Brisbane Lion Tim Notting, she has since fulfilled her life’s goal to raise a family while keeping a low profile

Do you have many times when people recognise you?

Once Emme started school a few mums came up to me. One said “I know you ... did you go to school with me?’’. Another one said “Did you deliver my baby?’’. I said “Maybe we had the same obstetrician?’’. A couple of days later she came up and said “I’m so sorry ... I know who you are now’’. She was embarrassed. I thought it was great.

You seem to relish the low profile?

Once I stopped swimming I just wanted to get away from everything and wanted to be normal. Growing up the only thing I really knew I wanted to be was a mum. Once I became a mum I just threw myself into that. I didn’t really stay in touch with swimming. Now that the kids are growing up I want to get involved again because I realise how much fun it was.

Susie O’Neill has spoken about how much motherhood challenged her after swimming because her sport was so planned and motherhood was so unscripted. Did you find that?

With my first I found it quite easy and loved it. With my second I did not find it as easy. There were whole other motherhood issues. Now with three it’s just chaos. I got asked once what was easier, swimming or motherhood. I said motherhood because you get to wake up to a smiling child not a coach. Now I say swimming because you don’t have arguments over things like socks every morning ... JUST PUT YOUR SOCKS ON!

Years before you became Olympic champion you had to overcome severe nerves. How bad were they?

I just didn’t want to swim. I remember at the final of the 100m at the Sydney Olympic trials I had to have a needle to stop myself from throwing up. I did not even warm up. I just sat in a spa in a suit. I remember sitting in the marshalling area, freezing cold, in a wetsuit.

Triple Olympic gold medallist Jodie Henry at home in Brisbane.

So how did you overcome the nerves?

I just raced a lot. After that we decided to go to as many international races as we could. The most important thing for me was family and I used to think “the people who are close to me don’t care whether I win this race and will still be there no matter what’’. I also learnt my best racing strategy. I had to chase. If I was in front it made me quite uneasy. That was the race plan always.

Three gold medals. Three world records. Athens gave you so much that it looked as if the flame just sort of wasn’t there for another Games.

It wasn’t. Not as it should have been. I felt I should have gone to another Games for people around me but not for myself. That’s why I pushed on even though I was not putting in 100 per cent. I knew that and so did my coaches and everyone around me. After Athens once I achieved Olympic goals and world records I thought “What else is there to achieve?’’. I felt a bit bored.

You and your husband Tim had to adjust to retirement together. How did you find that?

I adjusted to retirement a bit better than Tim did because I was pretty happy to walk away. It’s the difference between playing individual and a team sport, where you have your best mates around you every day but he is fine now.

Which was your favourite gold medal?

The first medal, the freestyle relay was by far the best for me. I trained with Alice Mills every day and with Libby (Lenton) we had been practising the relay. It was our first Olympic medal and we got it together.

A few years ago you had a reunion with your two gold medal-winning relay teams.

It was thanks to Ashley Callus. He told me how the Sydney relay team got together 10 years on, so I thought we should as well. I emailed all the girls and we had a good night of laughs and dinner on the Coast. A lot of us now are mums and we were talking about the kids. Giaan Rooney was a new mum and struggling with her kids sleeping and thinking “How tough is this?’’ and Libby and Alice were yet to have kids – now they have – and they were listening and we were saying “Don’t listen too hard”.

Jodie Henry stands with the Parthenon in the background while wearing three gold medals she won at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004.

Your relationship with Libby Lenton must have been interesting because you shared a relay gold yet were great rivals as well?

It was. When Libby and I got together recently we said “We are nice girls ... we get along’’ but it’s just that the rivalry of sport and females does not mix well. While we got along when we swam, we were not close because you cannot be close. That is why the Campbell sisters ... how they juggle it is amazing even though they have handled it their whole lives.

What advice would you give the Campbell girls in Rio?

I don’t know if I could give them a message apart from know your race plan and know yourself. They are so experienced. I am excited watching them. I don’t doubt they are a very good chance at winning the 4x100m relay again.

Much was made of the great Dutch swimmer Inge de Bruin staring you down before the 100m. Did you notice it?

Yes. She turned to me and was staring me down. Now I realise it probably was not that big a deal. She may not have been doing it intentionally. She may have been just concentrating. It may not have been too intimidating but at the time I laughed. If she was trying to intimidate me I found it funny because I did not feel I was overly threatening.

You will always be remembered for the Athens Games, but had you been there before or gone back since?

No. It’s really sad. Apparently the Games village is just a ghost town because of the Greek financial crisis. A lot of stuff has gone by the wayside. It was still a pretty cool Games and it was nice to do it at the birthplace of the Olympics.

What was it like being part of that swim team in Athens?

To be honest I never really felt that comfortable. I felt I grew up watching them and they were my idols. It was not until after Athens I felt I had proved myself and I belonged. I could barely say “Boo’’ to Ian Thorpe and Grant Hackett because they were my idols.

Originally published as Olympic champion Jodie Henry is loving life out of the limelight