WEBVTT - The Sit-Down with Alicia Molik 0:00:02.320 --> 0:00:05.280 Hi everyone, and welcome to another episode of the sit Down. 0:00:05.320 --> 0:00:07.880 I'm Mattrolope, a writer for ozopen dot com, and I'm. 0:00:07.840 --> 0:00:11.399 Viv Christine, managing editor of Australian Tennis magazine. 0:00:11.000 --> 0:00:13.360 And Viv why are we sitting down with Alisha Mullick 0:00:13.440 --> 0:00:13.840 this week? 0:00:14.080 --> 0:00:17.079 Well, it's twenty years can you believe it? Since Alisha 0:00:17.160 --> 0:00:20.400 won bronze at the Athens Olympics in two thousand and 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:23.680 four and she still describes that as the pinnacle of 0:00:23.720 --> 0:00:24.240 her career. 0:00:24.520 --> 0:00:26.040 Yeah, it was really cool to chat to her and 0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:28.320 hear her reflect on that run in such vivid detail. 0:00:28.440 --> 0:00:34.800 So let's have a listen now. Alisha Mullik, you are 0:00:34.880 --> 0:00:38.240 joining us on the sit Down today, almost twenty years 0:00:38.320 --> 0:00:41.360 on from what I imagine must be a huge career highlight, 0:00:41.400 --> 0:00:44.840 and I just wonder what you remember about those games 0:00:44.880 --> 0:00:45.479 twenty year is on. 0:00:45.840 --> 0:00:49.840 Well, first of all, I can't believe it's twenty years ago. 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:54.040 Quite amazing, because it's all still really fresh in my mind. 0:00:54.080 --> 0:00:56.160 And I think that, you know, the memory is so 0:00:56.360 --> 0:01:01.040 vivid because it was just I think, such a real moment, 0:01:01.080 --> 0:01:05.840 a turning point, a real achievement within my career. I 0:01:05.880 --> 0:01:08.840 look back on it now I can't quite believe, you know, 0:01:08.920 --> 0:01:12.800 that that it happened and that I achieved a bronze medal. 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:15.520 I mean, the first thing that I really think of was, 0:01:15.600 --> 0:01:17.640 you know, how difficult it was to win a medal 0:01:17.680 --> 0:01:23.760 in Athens, not purely because of the venue, the conditions. 0:01:23.840 --> 0:01:27.240 I think most days were forty plus, so I really 0:01:27.280 --> 0:01:31.480 remember that well. But secondly, the field, you know, aside 0:01:31.480 --> 0:01:38.160 from myself winning bronze and then Emmeline Maresmo silver, Justin 0:01:38.280 --> 0:01:42.840 Hannan gold was just you know, a phenomenal to be 0:01:43.080 --> 0:01:46.520 within their company and standing on the podium. That's a 0:01:46.640 --> 0:01:49.720 moment really etched in my mind that I will never 0:01:49.800 --> 0:01:52.520 ever forget. And you know, the kids now, you know, 0:01:52.640 --> 0:01:55.640 leading into the Olympics. Now children start to do projects 0:01:55.640 --> 0:01:58.720 and things, and they have a keen interest in varied sports. 0:01:58.760 --> 0:02:02.000 So it's it's nice to occasionally, you know, have some 0:02:02.080 --> 0:02:04.440 reminders of it too. Mostly every four years. 0:02:05.280 --> 0:02:08.680 Two weeks before the Olympics, you won the Stockholm title, 0:02:08.720 --> 0:02:12.000 and I just wonder getting that win so soon before 0:02:12.040 --> 0:02:14.080 the Olympics, Like, did you feel you were coming into 0:02:14.080 --> 0:02:18.120 Athens with like more momentum and confidence as a result of. 0:02:18.040 --> 0:02:24.080 That, Yeah, without question, And I do remember playing in Stockholm. 0:02:24.160 --> 0:02:28.560 I fortunately had won the singles and the double, so 0:02:29.000 --> 0:02:31.919 I had a lot of match practice in that particular week, 0:02:32.040 --> 0:02:36.320 and once again it was warm conditions quite almost quite 0:02:36.320 --> 0:02:40.640 similar to Athens. So everything was I think tipping in 0:02:40.680 --> 0:02:43.240 the right way as far as preparation for the Olympics 0:02:43.960 --> 0:02:47.919 when I competed in when I competed in Sydney, I 0:02:48.600 --> 0:02:51.000 didn't quite I was in the Olympics, but I didn't 0:02:51.040 --> 0:02:53.440 really think I was at the level or bleed, I 0:02:53.480 --> 0:02:56.280 was at the level to win a medal. But most 0:02:56.280 --> 0:02:59.680 definitely arriving in Athens having won a tournament, you know, 0:03:00.760 --> 0:03:03.840 it being probably the best six months in all you know, 0:03:04.160 --> 0:03:06.600 the best six months that I've ever had in my career. 0:03:07.040 --> 0:03:09.240 I felt that I was a definite shot. So it 0:03:09.280 --> 0:03:13.280 was a really different feeling going to the Olympics with 0:03:13.560 --> 0:03:16.200 a medal in sight. I think there's a lot of Olympians, 0:03:16.280 --> 0:03:19.880 or a lot of competitors who go there to participate, 0:03:20.480 --> 0:03:23.240 don't really have the full belief, don't have the full 0:03:23.320 --> 0:03:25.480 understanding of their ability and what it takes to win 0:03:25.520 --> 0:03:28.480 a medal. So that's what really set happens apart. I 0:03:28.480 --> 0:03:31.400 felt that I was ready I was really well prepared 0:03:32.440 --> 0:03:34.200 and the result really showed. 0:03:34.960 --> 0:03:40.440 Alicia, you beat Isugiyama, the number eight seed in the quarterfinals, 0:03:40.480 --> 0:03:42.840 so they gave you that guaranteed your chance to play 0:03:42.840 --> 0:03:45.400 off for the bronze medal match. Can you remember what 0:03:45.440 --> 0:03:47.559 that felt like, securing that chance. 0:03:48.800 --> 0:03:53.560 The opportunity, getting myself into a position where it was just, 0:03:54.160 --> 0:03:57.400 you know, it was within sight. All of a sudden, 0:03:57.920 --> 0:04:01.680 it's not about the matches. It's a metal match, and 0:04:01.720 --> 0:04:05.280 that it reads differently on the schedule. It feels different, 0:04:06.080 --> 0:04:08.600 all of a sudden, You're in contention for something that 0:04:09.400 --> 0:04:12.680 very very few people in the whole world have the 0:04:12.760 --> 0:04:16.240 ability to ever put their hand up for. So it 0:04:16.320 --> 0:04:18.159 gave me a real you know, it gave me a 0:04:18.160 --> 0:04:20.880 sense of pride that I'd put my country in that position, 0:04:21.000 --> 0:04:24.080 myself in that position, my team in that position, you know, 0:04:24.279 --> 0:04:26.200 and I couldn't wait for it. I was really looking 0:04:26.240 --> 0:04:32.080 forward to that following round. I yeah, I really narrowed 0:04:32.120 --> 0:04:35.040 my focus. I still I do remember my preparation and 0:04:35.360 --> 0:04:38.640 it was almost as if everything really condensed and you 0:04:38.720 --> 0:04:41.479 sort of block out the outside nose because it was 0:04:41.520 --> 0:04:44.000 about going that far, but making sure that I had 0:04:44.000 --> 0:04:45.440 a medal to take home as well. 0:04:46.360 --> 0:04:49.880 Were you aware of what had happened to Anastasia Mesquina 0:04:49.920 --> 0:04:52.720 in the other semi final before you faced her in 0:04:52.760 --> 0:04:54.000 the playoff match. 0:04:54.720 --> 0:04:57.880 Yeah, I had, I had, And in terms of I 0:04:57.920 --> 0:04:59.520 think she was I think she had a couple of 0:04:59.520 --> 0:05:02.760 match points or a match point away. I think from 0:05:02.800 --> 0:05:06.960 beating Emilie or Justine. I can't rememberho it was, but 0:05:07.040 --> 0:05:08.960 I feel like she was in a winning position and 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:12.640 she'd let it slip. She'd completely let a match go. 0:05:12.880 --> 0:05:16.880 I think she got anxious, she got nervous, and I 0:05:16.920 --> 0:05:19.799 remember her being completely devastated walking off the court. 0:05:21.800 --> 0:05:26.479 And can you describe the psychology of playing for the 0:05:26.480 --> 0:05:30.200 bronze medal, like you're balancing the disappointment of the semi final, 0:05:30.360 --> 0:05:33.400 yet you're playing for such a great prize. 0:05:34.120 --> 0:05:39.040 Yeah, I think. You know, that's the difference with the Olympics. 0:05:40.200 --> 0:05:43.000 In every other tournament around the world, you at at 0:05:43.040 --> 0:05:45.159 some point in time, you get bumped bundled out of 0:05:45.160 --> 0:05:46.720 the tournament unless you're the victor. 0:05:46.800 --> 0:05:48.400 And you know, for. 0:05:49.920 --> 0:05:54.800 Players such as you know Serena and Novak and you 0:05:54.839 --> 0:05:59.040 know Venus and you know these stars that continually make 0:05:59.120 --> 0:06:02.320 finals continue, you're lead at title winners. You know, that's 0:06:02.360 --> 0:06:06.000 always there. So the majority of tennis players around the 0:06:06.000 --> 0:06:10.000 world losing every week and that's I guess that was 0:06:10.040 --> 0:06:14.320 pretty special to have lost but still had a shot 0:06:14.360 --> 0:06:17.240 for the trophy, for the bronze medal, So it still 0:06:17.279 --> 0:06:20.360 felt like a win. It still felt you know, and 0:06:20.560 --> 0:06:22.720 really not since junior days do you lose and then 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.560 you have another opportunity, you know, in the feet in 0:06:25.600 --> 0:06:28.000 a van or you have something else to win. So 0:06:28.360 --> 0:06:32.200 it didn't diminish the didn't you know. I still felt 0:06:32.240 --> 0:06:37.440 incredibly excited, incredibly proud the fact that I was buying 0:06:37.480 --> 0:06:40.560 for a bronze medal. Yeah, in no way did it 0:06:40.560 --> 0:06:43.680 diminish my efforts as well in losing the previous. 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:47.280 Route Olympics return to Summer, the Summer Games in nineteen 0:06:47.360 --> 0:06:49.839 eighty eight, and in that time you're the only Aussie 0:06:49.880 --> 0:06:52.279 that's won an individual medal any any other time and 0:06:52.279 --> 0:06:55.240 Aussie's done it and it's been in doubles, so so 0:06:55.279 --> 0:06:57.560 that that, yeah, it's quite unique. And how where does 0:06:57.600 --> 0:07:00.320 that kind of achievement sit in the whole context your 0:07:00.560 --> 0:07:02.799 your career considering that significance. 0:07:02.640 --> 0:07:04.679 Yeah, it's right up there. It's probably the proudest moment 0:07:04.720 --> 0:07:08.760 of my whole career. I you know, winning brights means 0:07:08.760 --> 0:07:13.320 that you you walk away, you're exceptionally proud. You you 0:07:13.360 --> 0:07:16.080 get to take something home, You have a chance to 0:07:16.400 --> 0:07:20.200 step up on the podium. You you still have a 0:07:20.280 --> 0:07:23.920 chance to represent your country by you know, being in 0:07:23.960 --> 0:07:28.240 that third place and being alongside complete champions of the sport, 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:31.200 and you've had a second bite at the cherry. You've 0:07:31.200 --> 0:07:34.120 made the most of. But so it's a winning feeling. 0:07:34.120 --> 0:07:35.920 You feel like you've won a Grand Slam. I mean, 0:07:35.960 --> 0:07:37.920 the Grand Slams are the pinnacle of tennis. That my 0:07:38.000 --> 0:07:40.520 bronze medal was the pinnacle I think of my career, 0:07:40.600 --> 0:07:43.520 no question about it. You know, you reference how happy 0:07:43.560 --> 0:07:46.800 bronze medalists are and it's it's completely and true. It's 0:07:46.840 --> 0:07:50.320 completely euphoric as well. You know, there's a really good 0:07:50.360 --> 0:07:53.960 good I remember reading an article once saying that bronze 0:07:53.960 --> 0:07:57.520 medalists live longer than silver medalists because you know, if 0:07:57.520 --> 0:08:00.680 you win gold, yeah, things a great roasie. You you 0:08:00.720 --> 0:08:04.520 know that you've reached the pinnacle in your sport, you know, 0:08:04.640 --> 0:08:08.320 and the silver medalists always lived lived with what could 0:08:08.360 --> 0:08:11.240 have been what should have been, you know, the disappointment, 0:08:11.320 --> 0:08:16.600 reliving all the moments of where the gold medal match 0:08:16.680 --> 0:08:20.239 went wrong, what they could have done better, living in regret. 0:08:20.280 --> 0:08:23.080 And I think the bronze medalists, they said, you know, 0:08:23.520 --> 0:08:25.960 are so happy with their performance. They've come away with 0:08:26.040 --> 0:08:32.240 something and they you know, I think it increases their 0:08:32.320 --> 0:08:35.400 living capacity by a couple of extra years, the silver medalists. 0:08:35.440 --> 0:08:38.520 So I'm kind of glad I got the bronze, you know, 0:08:38.640 --> 0:08:41.320 gold would have been great. But you know, it was 0:08:41.600 --> 0:08:45.520 the most incredible feeling too too. When I was presented 0:08:45.559 --> 0:08:48.360 with the medal you know, around my neck and had 0:08:48.440 --> 0:08:52.599 the wreath from Athens as well, the olive leaves and 0:08:52.679 --> 0:08:56.240 the wreath that they placed over our heads. It was, Yeah, 0:08:56.280 --> 0:08:58.640 it was a real pinch me moment that actually didn't 0:08:58.640 --> 0:09:01.160 feel real at the time. It was something I never 0:09:01.200 --> 0:09:03.560 thought I would ever experience because you watch it as 0:09:03.600 --> 0:09:07.880 a kid and feels so far away from reality. You know, 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:10.559 you see this thing, the Olympics on a screen every 0:09:10.600 --> 0:09:12.760 couple of years, you know, the winter in between every 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:16.120 two years, and you know, so that the dream became 0:09:16.160 --> 0:09:18.360 a reality, and I think at that moment it was 0:09:18.760 --> 0:09:22.439 I've never cried because of joy. But I did cry 0:09:22.480 --> 0:09:25.120 that match, and it's never happened to me before in 0:09:25.160 --> 0:09:27.640 my whole career where I have won a match. I 0:09:27.800 --> 0:09:31.000 felt so proud of myself that I actually was in 0:09:31.080 --> 0:09:33.960 tears and I'd given everything and it was the only 0:09:34.000 --> 0:09:36.920 time it ever happened in my career tears of joy. 0:09:37.400 --> 0:09:39.520 Wow, Well that speaks of the significance of where it 0:09:39.559 --> 0:09:40.240 sits in your career. 0:09:40.760 --> 0:09:42.559 Yeah, you alluded. 0:09:42.160 --> 0:09:43.960 To it earlier in the chat that you were on 0:09:44.000 --> 0:09:46.440 the podium with Justine and Emily. So you lost the 0:09:46.440 --> 0:09:48.600 semi final to Emily. She went into the gold medal 0:09:48.600 --> 0:09:51.439 match and lost to Hennan. And there's some great photos 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:53.760 of the three of you appearing on the Metal Days 0:09:53.760 --> 0:09:55.600 and you're all talking to each other, I guess after 0:09:55.640 --> 0:09:58.560 the anthems or whatever, and you're and there's photos of 0:09:58.600 --> 0:10:00.959 you and Emily looking at Justine's and you're all sharing 0:10:01.000 --> 0:10:02.719 a joke and you've all got the reads on your head. 0:10:02.760 --> 0:10:05.160 I just wonder, Yeah, what that moment was like sharing 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:07.280 it with them, because as you said, they were, they 0:10:07.280 --> 0:10:10.520 were such champions of the game themselves, and what what 0:10:10.640 --> 0:10:12.839 was that like camaraderie like in the in the metal 0:10:12.840 --> 0:10:14.920 presentation and when that was all happening. 0:10:15.200 --> 0:10:18.079 So I'd never seen either of them smile that much either, 0:10:18.840 --> 0:10:21.959 you know, you know to tow athletes that keep their 0:10:21.960 --> 0:10:23.960 cards pretty close to their chests, or they did in 0:10:24.040 --> 0:10:28.280 their careers. Between Emilie and Justine and so they were, 0:10:29.240 --> 0:10:31.800 they were head over heels with their performance, their win, 0:10:32.240 --> 0:10:35.920 their their medals, and you know, for all of us, 0:10:35.960 --> 0:10:40.640 it was a moment that we're all comparing you know, weights, colors, 0:10:40.760 --> 0:10:45.920 we were all just so so interested in and I think, yeah, 0:10:45.960 --> 0:10:49.360 we're just all of us overcome with joy. And I 0:10:49.400 --> 0:10:51.800 have to say the same for Emline and Justine as well, 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:55.559 that it was just pure joy in that moment. Unfortunately, 0:10:56.520 --> 0:10:59.839 for Justine being able to experience her national anthem, the 0:11:00.040 --> 0:11:04.120 Algium national anthem, that was you know, one step further 0:11:04.200 --> 0:11:06.520 as well. It was you know that that even gave 0:11:06.559 --> 0:11:09.960 me goosebumps listening to it as an Australian athlete. 0:11:10.440 --> 0:11:13.920 Obviously, the Olympics is unlike any other experience that you 0:11:14.000 --> 0:11:17.040 have on tour. What was it like being around the 0:11:17.280 --> 0:11:20.360 Australian team, more broadly the Australian Olympic team and just 0:11:20.480 --> 0:11:22.360 other great athletes of the world. 0:11:24.320 --> 0:11:28.320 I think the absolute highlight is because throughout the year, 0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:31.640 in a general sense in tennis, you you aren't just 0:11:31.679 --> 0:11:34.440 following the summers around, but you are You're amongst tennis 0:11:34.440 --> 0:11:38.679 players all the time, tennis coaches, trainers, fitness trainers, mind coaches, 0:11:38.800 --> 0:11:43.200 you know, so you are around the same people so often. 0:11:43.440 --> 0:11:46.480 It's so many very tennis tournaments around the world, and 0:11:46.840 --> 0:11:49.800 all of a sudden you are traveling on buses with 0:11:50.600 --> 0:11:54.000 the swimming team, with the table tennis team, and getting 0:11:54.000 --> 0:11:58.760 to know other athletes outside of your sport and really 0:11:58.920 --> 0:12:02.520 forming some great cans, learning about their journeys, how they 0:12:02.640 --> 0:12:07.200 arrived there, learning more about other coaches in other sports 0:12:07.240 --> 0:12:11.400 as well. So you have this huge amount of respect 0:12:11.480 --> 0:12:14.839 for everyone around you, and there will be all the 0:12:15.200 --> 0:12:19.280 smaller moments that I really enjoyed, was, you know, going 0:12:19.320 --> 0:12:23.439 to you know, pick up your laundry from the laundromat 0:12:23.440 --> 0:12:25.719 in the village, but you might be in Athens. I 0:12:25.720 --> 0:12:27.839 think the line's often for twenty five you know, twenty 0:12:27.880 --> 0:12:30.040 twenty five minutes. Inevitably there's a couple of Aussies in 0:12:30.040 --> 0:12:32.560 the line. You know, you let them jump in front 0:12:32.559 --> 0:12:34.200 of you so they can get their laundry. A bit quicker. 0:12:34.240 --> 0:12:37.040 You start chatting and you just have a little bit 0:12:37.040 --> 0:12:40.120 of time to learn so much more about others that 0:12:40.160 --> 0:12:43.560 you generally wouldn't have had the opportunity to do so 0:12:43.640 --> 0:12:47.920 in crossing paths. Also, the apartment blocks are set up 0:12:48.000 --> 0:12:50.800 so a number of sports and athletes are sharing, often 0:12:50.840 --> 0:12:55.000 on the same level, so inevitably you're having coffee or 0:12:55.040 --> 0:12:58.040 a meal all together, and that's a that's a real highlight. 0:12:58.080 --> 0:13:02.520 It sounds so normal, but you know, in a sport 0:13:02.640 --> 0:13:05.920 like tennis, we often just don't have that opportunity. That's 0:13:05.920 --> 0:13:07.440 why it's just so extra special. 0:13:08.400 --> 0:13:11.960 Were there any particular athletes that you can recall meeting 0:13:12.040 --> 0:13:14.960 and sort of connecting with and anything specific you learn 0:13:15.120 --> 0:13:16.880 from them. 0:13:17.360 --> 0:13:20.880 I think, well, I did remember having a photo with 0:13:20.960 --> 0:13:26.160 Yeomen and that was I have to track that one down. 0:13:26.200 --> 0:13:27.840 Actually I'm not sure what it really is, but that 0:13:27.960 --> 0:13:29.960 was a real moment. You know, someone that you've seen 0:13:29.960 --> 0:13:35.160 on TV, the basketballer for so many years, probably within 0:13:35.200 --> 0:13:37.439 the Australian team. I think it was. You know, I've 0:13:37.440 --> 0:13:40.080 took a real interest in the group that were boxing, 0:13:40.600 --> 0:13:45.520 learning about their journeys. Even now I can't maybe we 0:13:45.600 --> 0:13:49.920 shared with now might have been actually the I think 0:13:49.920 --> 0:13:51.960 there was softball in Athens. I think I'm sharing some 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:54.800 of the softballers. To be honest, did you get. 0:13:54.640 --> 0:13:57.600 To watch other sports at all? What other sports did 0:13:57.640 --> 0:13:58.160 you take in? 0:13:59.679 --> 0:14:04.800 Very you It was just because of the conditions in Athens, 0:14:06.040 --> 0:14:11.400 lining up with matches, playing doubles was just a lot 0:14:11.440 --> 0:14:14.560 on the schedule. So I do remember watching some cycling. 0:14:15.040 --> 0:14:17.280 I do remember heading over to the pool and watching 0:14:17.320 --> 0:14:21.400 some races, doing as much as I could. However, hockey 0:14:21.440 --> 0:14:23.560 as well. I'd taken a hockey game that was an 0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:26.280 evening game, just as a real balance, you know. And 0:14:26.320 --> 0:14:29.520 that's I think the difficult part for a lot of 0:14:29.560 --> 0:14:32.520 athletes to manage the excitement of being in the village, 0:14:33.000 --> 0:14:38.600 managing their training, managing their competition. You know, even getting 0:14:38.680 --> 0:14:42.240 from it's different to every other event, because even getting 0:14:42.240 --> 0:14:45.480 from your accommodation to the dining hall sometimes can take 0:14:45.520 --> 0:14:47.760 twenty minutes by the time you've walked there, you know. 0:14:47.800 --> 0:14:50.960 So there's there's just so many other factors that you 0:14:51.080 --> 0:14:54.120 need to consider in your data, training or preparation for 0:14:54.200 --> 0:14:57.640 your match. So but you know you're at the Olympics, 0:14:57.720 --> 0:14:59.160 have to take some of it in. I know there's 0:14:59.200 --> 0:15:02.200 lots of sports choose not to do the ceremony, not 0:15:02.240 --> 0:15:04.840 to take pardon that, not to go and watch any 0:15:04.880 --> 0:15:07.880 other sports, so no outside distractions. I think it's a 0:15:07.960 --> 0:15:11.560 really fine balance. If I yeah, if I had a 0:15:11.640 --> 0:15:14.120 chance to chat to some younger, younger players who were 0:15:14.120 --> 0:15:16.920 representing Australia for the first time, I'd say, you know, 0:15:17.040 --> 0:15:19.000 strike a really fine balance there. 0:15:19.400 --> 0:15:23.200 And the opening ceremony. You did do that, yes, yeah, 0:15:23.240 --> 0:15:24.080 we all look. 0:15:24.960 --> 0:15:28.960 Very few players didn't take part, and I think, you know, 0:15:29.000 --> 0:15:32.400 it's always I think as tennis players in general, we're 0:15:32.480 --> 0:15:35.760 quite flexible. You know, we're used to delays, we're used 0:15:35.800 --> 0:15:38.400 to waiting around quite a loss, so you know, in 0:15:38.480 --> 0:15:42.760 various tournaments, bad weather or various other reasons. So the 0:15:42.800 --> 0:15:46.960 opening ceremony was always something which I opted in for. 0:15:47.080 --> 0:15:50.360 I mean, it's it's a real highlight. There's a huge 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:54.400 buzz amongst the village, and especially when the whole Australian 0:15:54.440 --> 0:15:58.040 team converge in their outfits and consense excitement and everyone's 0:15:58.080 --> 0:16:02.240 scrubbing photos with each other when the flag bearers were announced, 0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:05.320 it's a huge you know, again, it's what you watch 0:16:05.320 --> 0:16:09.200 on TV and it's genuinely you know, you feel like 0:16:09.240 --> 0:16:12.800 incredibly proud as an Australia in that as an Australian 0:16:12.920 --> 0:16:16.360 in that moment when you're about to walk into a stadium, 0:16:16.920 --> 0:16:20.760 you know, the piercing screens and whistles, it's you know, 0:16:20.840 --> 0:16:22.760 the roar of the crowd just phenomenal. 0:16:23.640 --> 0:16:26.720 Were you aware of the response to your bronze medal 0:16:26.840 --> 0:16:28.520 achievement back home in Australia. 0:16:29.280 --> 0:16:29.960 Not really. 0:16:30.000 --> 0:16:32.200 And I say that because after the Olympics, I headed 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:36.800 straight to New Haven, so I was, you know, barely 0:16:36.880 --> 0:16:38.920 had time to blink. I sort of, I think only 0:16:38.960 --> 0:16:40.440 had a day or two and I was on a 0:16:40.480 --> 0:16:42.880 flight and you know, off to the States. It was 0:16:43.280 --> 0:16:46.960 heavy preparation for the US Open so that, you know, 0:16:46.960 --> 0:16:51.000 I was really immediate in my mind. So it was 0:16:51.080 --> 0:16:54.400 sort of difficult to really catch yourself enjoy it too much. 0:16:55.560 --> 0:16:59.240 But I don't think I really realized perhaps the momentum 0:16:59.240 --> 0:17:05.520 at home. Maybe now I recognize the significance being the 0:17:05.560 --> 0:17:10.480 only singles medalists now, you know, in history, and I'm 0:17:10.520 --> 0:17:13.520 really proud of that, you know. To me, it really 0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:15.960 solidified in my mind that you know, I was up 0:17:16.000 --> 0:17:18.720 there with the best of them, you know, the handful 0:17:18.760 --> 0:17:21.560 of the best of them. So when you when you 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:24.480 genuinely feel that it gave me a different outlook for 0:17:24.600 --> 0:17:28.040 the US Open for the remainder of the year leading 0:17:28.080 --> 0:17:31.479 into the Australian summer, you know it did, and I 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:33.920 want to I think I'd won almost the most amount 0:17:33.960 --> 0:17:35.840 of matches on tour that year in two thousand and 0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:40.040 four or close to so it really helped almost provide 0:17:40.040 --> 0:17:43.080 an extra layer of armor for me for the Australian Summer. 0:17:43.040 --> 0:17:47.399 I remember arriving ready for the leading events and the 0:17:47.440 --> 0:17:50.640 AO feely in a pretty bulletproof I'd played so many 0:17:50.680 --> 0:17:54.600 matches of won a heap. The bronze medal sort of, yeah, 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.920 propelled me forward in a sense that it gave me 0:17:57.960 --> 0:18:00.800 an I think it gave me a differentpreciation for the 0:18:00.880 --> 0:18:03.960 level that I was at as well, and a really 0:18:04.000 --> 0:18:07.800 different level of confidence being a medalist at the Olympics. 0:18:07.880 --> 0:18:11.480 Yet you know, it helped propel me forward to that 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:14.000 feeling of that I could win the Australian app And 0:18:14.040 --> 0:18:17.000 that's the only Australian Open I really felt. It didn't 0:18:17.000 --> 0:18:19.080 feel it in any of the other ones ever. 0:18:20.440 --> 0:18:22.280 You kind of alluded to it before, but tennis players 0:18:22.280 --> 0:18:24.360 get us this all the time about where Olympic success 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.080 sits compared to Grand Slams, because it is that kind 0:18:27.119 --> 0:18:28.720 of like, you know, the pinnacle of the sport. Some 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:31.479 people might say the Australian Open or whatever like that, 0:18:31.520 --> 0:18:35.000 but it sounds like for you, the Olympics is right 0:18:35.080 --> 0:18:37.639 up there, if not the best for you. Like if 0:18:37.640 --> 0:18:40.800 you could choose a gold medal or a Grand Slam 0:18:40.840 --> 0:18:43.040 singles title, what did you pick? 0:18:43.520 --> 0:18:45.760 Yeah, well, I wish I won a Grand Slam in 0:18:45.840 --> 0:18:48.680 single so then I could really tell you where where 0:18:48.680 --> 0:18:52.200 it's sat. But the bronze for me is I mean, 0:18:52.520 --> 0:18:55.560 in fairness, lots of you know that there's not many 0:18:55.560 --> 0:18:58.440 one time Grand Slam winners. Most of the time they're 0:18:58.520 --> 0:19:00.520 multiple Grand Slam winns. And I'm pretty sure if you 0:19:00.560 --> 0:19:04.879 asked those players where that rate their gold medal for 0:19:04.920 --> 0:19:06.840 those that have won a number of them. You know, 0:19:07.640 --> 0:19:09.919 God sam s get old. I'm bless Europe, you know, 0:19:10.520 --> 0:19:13.880 Serena or Novak at this point in time, or perhaps 0:19:13.880 --> 0:19:17.640 our caras down the track. The gold medal, I can 0:19:17.680 --> 0:19:20.639 imagine is always going to have a really special place, 0:19:21.280 --> 0:19:25.040 probably front and center in their trophy cabinets at home. 0:19:26.920 --> 0:19:30.320 But for me, it was bronze was like gold. It 0:19:30.359 --> 0:19:34.520 felt that it felt that I achieved everything in my 0:19:34.600 --> 0:19:38.360 life and tennis, and it really, it really really did. 0:19:38.720 --> 0:19:41.040 Winning the bronze medal it felt like gold. It could 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:42.920 have been silver, could have been gold, could have been bronze, 0:19:42.920 --> 0:19:45.480 but I was absolutely over the moon. But I think, 0:19:46.160 --> 0:19:48.159 I think it has a really special place for a 0:19:48.240 --> 0:19:52.440 lot of athletes because of tennis being that individual sport. 0:19:52.600 --> 0:19:56.119 But there are so many individuals who are so passionate 0:19:56.240 --> 0:19:59.480 about their country, is about playing for their flag. So 0:19:59.520 --> 0:20:02.040 I think some that's a little bit lost and diminished 0:20:02.119 --> 0:20:05.160 because of the fact that tennis players had so many 0:20:05.200 --> 0:20:08.359 platforms throughout the year, which sadly other sports don't have. 0:20:08.600 --> 0:20:12.919 So I think publicly and in the press sometimes you know, 0:20:13.000 --> 0:20:16.080 the worth of a medal to a tennis player isn't 0:20:16.080 --> 0:20:19.560 always probably acknowledged as much as it should or give 0:20:19.560 --> 0:20:24.120 them the same attention. So you know, happily that changes 0:20:24.560 --> 0:20:26.880 changes you know, people's perspective as well on it. 0:20:27.280 --> 0:20:29.760 We'll see, I guess in Paris what the reactions are 0:20:29.920 --> 0:20:30.520 in the next week. 0:20:30.560 --> 0:20:33.720 I do. Yeah, Alicia, we've heard you say that you 0:20:34.280 --> 0:20:36.800 weren't quite sure where your actual medal. 0:20:37.040 --> 0:20:41.600 Was yes, yeah, and I still don't know where. I 0:20:41.600 --> 0:20:44.240 said to Mum, I was going to do this interview 0:20:44.320 --> 0:20:46.239 and that, oh god, I said, in the case, I 0:20:46.280 --> 0:20:49.160 still can't find it. So I look. When I returned 0:20:49.200 --> 0:20:51.719 poked from Athens, from that whole trip in America, I 0:20:51.760 --> 0:20:55.240 remember showing my medal to a lot of people friends, 0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:57.240 you know. I've been in biuted to a few schools 0:20:57.280 --> 0:21:00.399 to you know, chat to various year levels about the 0:21:00.400 --> 0:21:03.199 Olympics about my metal. Took it into show them, so 0:21:03.320 --> 0:21:06.560 I don't necessarily think I've left it anywhere. I remember 0:21:06.560 --> 0:21:09.919 always keeping it in a and two pairs of really 0:21:10.040 --> 0:21:16.800 bright pink bed sock, and I think I remember going 0:21:16.840 --> 0:21:18.679 back to it was just a really busy time. But 0:21:18.760 --> 0:21:20.600 a year or two later going back to base to 0:21:20.640 --> 0:21:23.439 keep it in my soft draw, and I thought that 0:21:23.480 --> 0:21:25.640 wasn't a very good place. I think I remember going 0:21:25.640 --> 0:21:27.439 to Mum and Dad's house and popping it up in 0:21:27.480 --> 0:21:31.920 their attic. I have had a little search. I've searched, 0:21:32.480 --> 0:21:35.680 I've moved homes a number of times. I've searched everything 0:21:35.760 --> 0:21:38.720 from top to toe, and I think I have to 0:21:38.760 --> 0:21:41.360 give Mum and Dad's house in Adelaide another going over 0:21:41.480 --> 0:21:45.600 because I just cannot find it. I cannot actually remember 0:21:46.520 --> 0:21:49.399 where its final resting spot is, and it's a bit embarrassing. 0:21:49.440 --> 0:21:51.120 And now my kids are at the age i'm sure 0:21:51.119 --> 0:21:53.920