E&OE……………………….……………………………………………………………

 

I just want to say how pleased and proud I am to be here to support Senator Kate Lundy, the Minister for Sport, in welcoming the selections and in encouraging our team on behalf of the Australian nation as you go forward to London and hopefully to glory.

 

The thing about all of our Olympians is that you go to London with all of our best wishes behind you. Every single Australian is barracking wholeheartedly and enthusiastically for every member of every Australian team at the Olympics. That’s why I’m so pleased and grateful that the Government has given me the chance to be here today to help support this announcement.

 

I want to congratulate every one of those selected to go to London because at least a decade of dedication and grit has gone in to your selection. The determination, the effort, the physical and mental discipline that has gone in to Olympic selection is simply extraordinary and you deserve our admiration and our gratitude that you have been prepared to do this for yourselves but also for us as Australians and as well as congratulating the gymnasts selected today, it’s important to acknowledge everyone else who has been vital to this achievement – the coaches, the parents and also the fellow competitors, particularly those who haven’t been selected because without a sport, there can be no team to go to London and there’s not a sport without people who don’t get selected as well as those who do get selected.

 

So, I think this is a marvellous celebration of what people can do if they set their minds and their hearts on an important goal and I’m really thrilled and really delighted to be here to help support this announcement today.

 

I know that Australian gymnastics has come a long way, women’s gymnastics in particular. We did remarkably well in Beijing, we did extremely well in Dehli, we’ve done very well in the lead-up competition to London and let’s hope we go right to the very pinnacle of achievement in London in a few weeks’ time.

 

Thank you.

 

[ends]