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Tribute to Hornsby's Commonwealth Games Athletes

02 May 2018

Mr MATT KEAN (Hornsby—Minister for Innovation and Better Regulation) (18:40): In April this year Australia was on show as we held the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast. With more than 6,000 athletes competing, it was with pride that I watched the Australian athletes show the world what they are really made of. I was particularly proud to see a number of athletes from the Hornsby shire who were chosen to compete. These athletes, no matter where they finished, have done our community proud. I want to acknowledge them today for all the hard work, the early morning training, the sacrifices they have made for their careers and for showing the younger generation just what is possible when you are determined to make your dream a reality.

For Mount Kuring-gai local Alysha Burnett, this was her first Commonwealth Games. The 21-year-old had a fantastic lead-up which included a silver medal in the heptathlon at the Taipei World University Games late last year. She got off to an amazing start with a number of personal best times and was on top of the leaderboard after three events. However, her track results in the second half were not good enough to keep her in medal contention. She was ranked ninth overall, a phenomenal achievement for her first ever Commonwealth Games. Alysha, who attended Asquith Girls High School, is now studying a Bachelor of Sport and Exercise Science at the Australian Catholic University. She first started her athletics career at Foxglove Oval with Northern District Little Athletics, a wonderful organisation fostering young talent in our local community.

Also competing was fellow local and former student of Mount Kuring-Gai Public School Rohan Bright. I have been watching Rohan compete for many years and I was very proud to see him represent Australia in April. Rohan has a form of short stature called hypochondroplasia. Having started swimming after recommendation from his doctors he has found a love of competing and smashing the competition. Taking inspiration from his cousin Torah Bright, who won gold at the Winter Olympics, Rohan hopes that he will also one day take the Olympic stage. Last year at the World Dwarf Games in Canada, Rohan took home five gold medals out of five events. He also made the final at last year's Australian Swimming Championships. I am proud to say Rohan finished fifth in the 50-metre men's final and sixth in the 200-metre individual medley at the Commonwealth Games, and I could not be happier for him. Alysha and Rohan have done Mount Kuring-gai proud, and I know there were many in the local community cheering them on.

Hornsby local Larissa Pasternatsky has not had it easy. Plagued by injury, she has had to work harder than most to make her dream a reality. This year, however, she has turned a corner winning the NSW State Championships for 100 metres and 200 metres sprint double and placing third in the 200 metres at the nationals. She is ranked in the top three for both 100 metres and 200 metres in Australia. This secured her a place to represent Australia at the Commonwealth Games. She ran an awesome race but did not make the finals of the 200 metres, finishing fifth in the semi-final. This was a wonderful result for an athlete who, through her injuries, did not think she would compete again. She has shown real determination, courage and perseverance to make the Commonwealth Games, and we were proud to watch this outstanding Hornsby resident continue to take on the world.

Perhaps one of Hornsby's most well-known athletes is Michelle Jenneke. Michelle shot to fame for the warm-up dance she does before each race. Michelle started hurdles when she was 10 years old. With her current personal best of 12.82 seconds she is the New South Wales record holder and ranks as the second fastest Australian women's 100 metres hurdler of all time. She is a proud product of the Cherrybrook Little Athletics Association. That great organisation does wonderful things in our community. However, it was the dance she did at the junior championships before a race in 2012 that earned her 27 million views onYouTube and the name the "Dancing Hurdler". I know that the Temporary Speaker is one of those viewers and he should desist for looking at it now.

This is not the first time Michelle has represented Australia. She competed in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014. Michelle missed out on a bronze medal by 0.1 of a second in the 100 metres hurdle final, with a time of 13.07 seconds, in what was seen by experts as a brilliant race and a show of her future potential. The Channel 7 commentator and athletics great Tamsyn Lewis said Michelle is a talented athlete and she was pleased Australians were able to see what she has to offer. The future holds huge things for Michelle but for now she is going to take a break from the sport—do not worry, Michelle intends to compete in the Olympic Games in Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Congratulations to Alysha, Rohan, Larissa and Michelle. Everyone in Hornsby has been cheering them on. Alysha, Rohan, Larissa and Michelle have made our shire enormously proud.