The Heartbeat of the Land

Cathy Freeman is a proud Kuku Yalanji and Magarr-Magarr Warra woman and an Australian Indigenous Olympic champion. She ran her first race at five years old and discovered her love for the feeling of racing.

In 1990, she was part of the gold medal-winning 4x100m relay team at the Auckland Commonwealth Games, becoming the first Aboriginal Australian woman to win gold at an international athletics event. She was named Young Australian of the Year in 1991 and Australian of the Year in 1998. She also won the World Championship in the 400m in 1997 and 1999.

Her most celebrated achievement occurred at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, where she was the first competing athlete to light the Olympic flame during the opening ceremony, an image seen by millions worldwide. She then fulfilled a lifelong dream by winning the gold medal in the 400m.

Coral Vass is an award-winning Australian children’s author with books published by Scholastic Books Australia, the National Library of Australia, and Penguin Random House Australia. With a background in Media, Coral has always been passionate about storytelling and inspiring a love of literature in children. Her signature writing style is characterized by rhythm, rhyme, and a generous splash of fun.