6 Sept 2020

Sydney 2000 Olympics: Memories from Rob Blackadder

My Olympic experience started in 1992 when Sydney was asked to support the bid. I volunteered my school. Some of the best photographs I have are of the school excursion of 30 students to, what is now the tennis centre, a grass oval in the early hours of the morning to hear the winning announcement. We then went on to be present at just about every opening of facilities at Homebush with my students being active members of the Youth Ambassador scheme.

At the same time I started being an ``official official’’ with ANSW and Athletics Australia sitting exams and judging field events etc. My first taste of the big time was working in the TIC at the Overseas Terminal in Sydney for the World Juniors in 1996.

When the Opening Ceremony finally started I think I had already put in eight years of Olympic/Paralympic preparation. I had been selected to officiate in Birmingham, UK, at the World IPC Championships and the World Wheelchair Games in Christchurch. I was ready to experience my first Olympic Games. I knew I had made it when on September 16 2000 I started to get phone calls from around the world saying they had seen me on TV during the Opening Ceremony. My face just happened to be filmed as the UK team entered the stadium and my long-suffering family could not believe there was Dad being watched by 3500 million people.

As a throws judge during the Olympics my best memory was the ``Best Night of Athletics’’ when standing in the middle of 110,000 people watching Cathy Freeman and being amused by the sight of female shot putters covering their ears while waiting to be introduced to the crowd; the noise was that intense.

During the Paralympics we were billeted in the Athletes Village, a vast improvement to the student halls of a Sydney University. As an Assistant Technical Manager I would leave, a sleeping Richard Batterley my room mate, and walk to the canteen for breakfast enjoying the village camaraderie and then over to the Stadium to set up for the day’s play.

My unforgettable memory of these Games was the singing of the 70,000-voice choir. On one of many occasions the rendition of Advance Australia Fair when an Aussie won gold still brings up the hairs on the back of my head. Fantastic!

Now I have a cupboard full of Olympic and Parralympic souvenirs and a head full of memories.

How do you follow that?

David Tarbotton For Athletics NSW

Image: Sydney 2000 Olympic throws technical officials – Rob Blackadder is centre from row.