In this episode, we speak with Jane Flemming, who made her name in the late '80s and early '90s as a golden girl in track and field, a two-time Olympian – and Commonwealth Games gold medallist – specialising in the heptathlon and long jump. Flemming retired before the Sydney 2000 Olympics and transitioned into a career in media, marketing and management, but 18 months ago she took on a different role altogether, as president of Australian Athletics.
It’s an exciting time to be in the role, too, with a host of local mid-career champions like Nina Kennedy, Jessica Hull and Matt Denny, not to mention junior stars on the rise like Torrie Lewis and Claudia Hollingsworth, Cameron Myers and, of course, Gout Gout. Flemming talks to Good Weekend senior writer Konrad Marshall about everything from her early years as an athlete to the DNA tests being used to "protect women's sport", and the runway to Brisbane 2032.