Sport
15 November, 2023
Athletes visit district’s schools
Schools were buzzing in the Oakey district last week as Paralympian Jacob Templeton and triathlete Kira Hedgeland made visits to local schools through the ‘Olympics Unleashed.”
At Jondaryan and St. Monica’s Jacob Templeton spoke about the importance of giving it a go and pushing through challenges.
He related back to an experience he’d had in missing out on selection for the Tokyo Paralympics despite making the qualifying time.
“Australia is one of the toughest teams to make - you needed to be top 5 in the world for 2021,” he said.
“The Coaches told me I had to beat a certain time to qualify.
“I got the time but the coaches said, ‘You’re not going’.
“Too many people made the qualifying time and they couldn’t take everyone.
“I felt pretty confused and found it hard to decide whether or not to keep swimming.”
Ultimately, Jacob decided to keep going and raced at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games, where he won a silver medal in his 50-metre freestyle category.
Jacob said his greatest inspirations for getting into swimming were Michael Phelps and Ian Thorpe.
When a student asked him if he knew any famous swimmers, Jacob said he’d seen Ariarne Titmus come up through the system in Tasmania, and that he was friends with world-record holder Kaylee McKeowen.
Meanwhile, at Kulpi, triathlete Kira Hedgeland spoke about her experience of getting injured at a meet in Hungary.
Kira showed the students her triathlete suit and spoke about the importance of training and preparation.
She told the students that her aim is to qualify for the Olympics in Paris, Los Angeles and maybe even Brisbane at the 2032 Games.
Students at the three visits were impressed by the speakers, and the experiences they shared.
