Zoe McKenzie (Flinders, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

With Australia bringing home its biggest ever medal haul from the 2024 Paris Olympics, I want to pay tribute to four remarkable sportswomen from my electorate of Flinders—Eileen Cikamatana, in weightlifting; Emily Whitehead in artistic gymnastics; and Caitlin Parker and Tyla McDonald in boxing. All proudly donned the green and gold on the biggest sporting stage in the world.

The Mornington Peninsula well and truly punches above its weight when it comes to our contribution to the boxing ring. It was incredible to see our local community rally around Tyla and Caitlin, from Peninsula Boxing in Mornington, as they competed in Paris. Caitlin competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, making it to the quarterfinals and, in a heartbreaking turn of events, losing on a points decision. She returned in 2024 as the only Australian female boxer to participate in more than one Olympic Games, this time as captain of the Australian boxing team. Caitlin contributed to the record medal tally by bringing home a bronze medal, making her the first Australian woman to win a medal in the discipline of boxing.

For Tyla, boxing was originally meant to be a means of improving her fitness to play netball but it was not long before she took over boxing as the main game. Her unwavering ferocity in the boxing ring garnered immense support back home, with almost every shop window in Somerville adorned with a poster of our hometown hero.

Eileen is one of many residents of the Flinders electorate who has moved from another country to make the Mornington Peninsula her home. I greeted 54 new Australians who are Mornington Peninsula residents just the other day. Having previously represented Fiji in weightlifting, Eileen was proud to wear the green and gold at the Paris Olympics. She shared with the local magazine Peninsula Essence after winning gold for Australia at the 2022 Commonwealth Games:

The gold medal was my way of showing my enormous gratitude for everything Australia has done for me … The only way that I can repay this is to win for Australia.

Competing in the women's 81 kilo division, Eileen placed fourth, making her the best performing Australian weightlifter at the Paris Olympics. Although she only narrowly missed out on a medal, the hearts and minds of all the residents of Flinders were with her.

After making her Olympic debut in Tokyo, Rosebud local Emily Whitehead proudly represented Australia in the women's artistic gymnastics team in Paris this year. Emily did us proud, demonstrating her skill in a highly technical discipline which rewards precision and great athletic strength.

The strong performance of the women's team representing Australia at the Olympics reflects the depth of female sporting talent that our country has to offer. Thirteen of the 18 gold medals won by the Australian team were taken home by female athletes in this year's games. The Mornington Peninsula has much to be proud of in fostering the sporting ambitions of these women. Nationally, women and girls are underrepresented in organised sport, with only 32 per cent of females who are 15 years and above participating in weekly sporting activities, compared to 49 per cent of their male counterparts, according to the 2022 National sport and physical activity participation report.

This is not always the trend on the Peninsula. Following the success of the Matildas at the 2023 Women's World Cup, there was an 18 per cent increase in girls participation in soccer nationally. Seeing female athletes achieve on the world stage provides vital inspiration to young girls to get involved in sport at a local level. I see this far and wide across my electorate, where girls are just as eager and just as capable, if not more so, than the boys. This grassroots participation is not only good for the health and wellbeing of adolescent girls and women but also lays the foundation for our future Olympic champions. Young Australians watching our female athletes compete in Paris are provided with powerful role models not just on the sporting field but in every aspect of their lives. Their traits of resilience and teamwork and overcoming adversity are universal. As Caitlin Parker shared:

There's always been something in me that wants to prove to myself and to everyone else that I'm good enough and that being female isn't going to stop me.

The remarkable results of these athletes are also testament to the local sporting clubs and organisations across the Mornington Peninsula. Tyla and Caitlin trained at Peninsula Boxing in Mornington and Eileen at the Oceania Weightlifting Institute in Dromana. Those are just two of the many incredible sporting associations within my electorate.

I am enormously proud of the way in which the people of the Flinders electorate rallied behind these great women to support them in their endeavours. They did so not only in helping to fundraise but in celebrating their success and recognising the enormous commitment and hard work that got them to Paris. I hope the success of Tyla and Caitlin in the boxing ring, Emily in gymnastics and Eileen in weightlifting inspire young people, especially girls, across our community to be what they see and to follow in their footsteps.

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