Australia’s success in Rio Paralympics provides Olympians a lesson in humility and focus

AUSTRALIA’S outstanding success in the Rio Paralympics is an object lesson to the administrators and high profile athletes who represented this country in the Olympic Games.

Curtis McGrath celebrates winning gold at in the Para-canoe in Rio.

AUSTRALIA’S outstanding success in the Rio Paralympics is an object lesson to the administrators and high profile athletes who represented this country in the Olympic Games two weeks earlier.

A lesson in humility and focus.

Our Paralympians, many of whom have already conquered seemingly impossible odds to represent their country, showed what can be achieved with a humble mindset and rigorous determination.

They finished their campaign with 81 medals, 22 of them gold and were placed fifth on the medal table.

Two weeks earlier, our Olympians finished 10th in their competition, with 29 medals, including eight gold. Given Australia’s results leading into the event the pre-Games prediction from a data research group and a leading sports magazine was that we would win 18 to 20 gold medals and that Copacabana Beach would glow in the reflection of Australia’s success.

Paralympic swimmer Brenden Hall won gold, silver and bronze in Rio.

Make no mistake. Anyone who qualifies for an Olympic Games has done an outstanding job but Rio and before that London were disappointments for Australia’s Olympic team and their fans given the high expectations on the teams.

Between the London Games and Rio, the Australian Institute of Sport spent $332 million on Olympic sports, including $27.5 million given directly to athletes to support their training.

The spending didn’t result in a gold bonanza and $114.5 million went to sports that did not produce a medal.

In Rio, high-profile swimmers Mitch Larkin, Emily Seebohm, Cameron McEvoy and Cate and Bronte Campbell all performed below par.

Our hockey team, funded to the tune of $26.7 million, failed to win a place on the dais.

Contrast with the likes of Petrie’s Paralympic swimmer Brenden Hall, who lost a leg to chickenpox as a small boy but made great strides into sporting history with gold, silver and bronze in Rio, to go with two gold and bronze in London.

Or Curtis McGrath, who carried the Australian flag at the closing ceremony after gold in the Para-canoe. He lost both legs to a landmine while serving with the Australian Army in Afghanistan and won gold with little financial support.

Last year the Federal Minister for Sport, Sussan Ley announced the Australian Government would invest more than $134 million directly into Australian national sporting organisations and athletes.

While 27 sports had their overall investment allocation increased, Paralympic athletes had to make do with less than a 10th of the budget to fund 176 Rio competitors across 16 sports.

But just as they have done in life, Australia’s Paralympians set the bar high with their performances.

Not only did they provide heartwarming stories of triumph over adversity, but they proved great value for money, too.

Originally published as Australia’s success in Rio Paralympics provides Olympians a lesson in humility and focus