Olympics Unleashed: Australian Olympians Natalie Burton and Aleisha Power visit the West Kimberley

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Olympics Unleashed: *********** Olympians Natalie Burton and Aleisha Power visit the West Kimberley

Two *********** Olympians have recently toured through the West Kimberley, sharing their Olympic journey with school children and inspiring them to pursue their goals.

*********** Olympians Natalie Burton and Aleisha Power visited Cable Beach Primary School on September 4 as part of the *********** Olympic Committee’s Olympics Unleashed program tour.

The pair shared their paths to the Olympic Games and the life lessons they learned along the way, encouraging students to follow their passions and persevere through challenges.

Camera IconOlympics Unleashed visited Cable Beach Primary School on September 4. Credit: Katya Minns

Ms Burton, who represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, spoke of how she played many sports before finding her passion in basketball at 12-years-old.

The former Opals star opened up about the heartbreak of losing to Serbia by just two points at the Rio Olympics and shared how she worked through the difficulties that come with playing professional sport.

“There are so many things that can stop us from going out there and trying our best and thinking that maybe a goal is too big for me and that’s never going to happen,’ she said.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconAustralian basketballer Natalie Burton. Credit: Katya Minns

“I think that kind of shuts the door on a lot of goals, but if you can hear it from someone who maybe thought the same things but just tried one or two things that helped them, and if you can take that away and apply it to your own life, I think that’s the point of sport.

“It’s a platform where we can connect to other humans and learn from the ups and downs that come with sport.”

Ms Power, who just returned from the Paris Olympics last month, also highlighted how important it is to have role models and people who are part of the community – not just athletes – to talk to children about how they got to where they are today.

“I don’t think anyone’s pathway is linear, and it’s really important to see people and hear about how they go to where they are, because you can take a lot of learnings from that,” she said.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconAustralian hockey player Aleisha Power. Credit: Katya Minns

“Doesn’t necessarily mean you have to become an athlete, but you can use it in any pathway you take.”

The Hockeyroos goalkeeper discussed during her presentation how she prioritised her mental health and support system to power her strengths in her career after overcoming personal adversity.

“I think it’s important to have those foundational skills of looking after yourself, purely because once you get out there in the world and you’re trying to pursue passions, it’s not as gentle sometimes,” she said.

“It’s not as straightforward as structured classrooms and things like that, so I try to push the message of having that foundation of know how to look after myself, recognise when I’m not doing so well mentally and to be able to counteract that.

“Because when you get out there, you are going to come across rejection or non-linear pathways, so really having that self-care system can make it easier to bounce back.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconQuestion time with the CBPS children. Credit: Katya Minns

Ms Burton and Ms Power answered eager questions by CBPS students in Year 3 to Year 6, and spent time talking to them after the presentation while signing autographs on their clothing and backpacks.

“We try to get out to as many communities as possible, especially to go to places where a lot of athletes don’t necessarily come all the time,” Ms Burton said.

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconAustralian Olympian and Opals’ basketballer Natalie Burton signs autographs at Cable Beach Primary School. Credit: Katya Minns

“So it’s really good to come out here and spread the messages that the Unleashed program is about, which is less to do about creating an Olympian and more about what you can learn from an Olympian.

“And what you can learn when you realise that they’re just normal people who pursue their passions, and maybe students can take something from that as they go our their and pursue their own passions.”

data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==Camera IconAustralian Olympian and Hockeyroo goalkeeper Aleisha Power signs autographs at Cable Beach Primary School. Credit: Katya Minns

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