Australia Day honours: posthumous recognition for ‘Golden Girl’ Betty Cuthbert

‘Golden Girl’ Betty Cuthbert has been posthumously named a Companion of the Order of Australia.

Betty Cuthbert.

“Golden Girl” Betty Cuthbert has been posthumously named a Companion of the Order of Australia for service to athletics throughout Australia and the world, “particularly as a gold medallist at the Melbourne and Tokyo Olympic Games, and as a role model, fundraiser, and advocate for research into a cure for ­multiple sclerosis”.

Rhonda Gillam, Cuthbert’s personal carer for almost three decades before the track legend died after a long battle with MS last year, aged 79, would have added one more line to that citation: “Services to grace and humility.”

“She’s left an amazing legacy because of her humility,” said Ms Gillam. “You could be a great sportsman but sometimes you might not be remembered for your sportsmanship and humility.”

It’s the recurring theme to any discussion about Cuthbert and the way she carried herself through 48 years of debilitating illness; how little the “Golden Girl” bathed in her own glowing; how quick she was to turn her light towards anyone but herself.

She rarely reflected on her achievements: the only Olympian, male or female, to win a gold medal in all running events of her era (100, 200 and 400m).

“I’m just so happy for her,” Ms Gillam said. “She deserved every piece of recognition she got.”