As the world celebrates the Paris Olympics, two Aussies who've worn green and gold reflect on their time representing the country.
Create a free account to read this article
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Resthaven Port Elliot resident Vicki Murphy has swum with Olympic Games legend Dawn Fraser. As a teen, Vicki travelled to Tasmania for her first nationals and shared a room with Dawn.
"We became friends as well as swimming teammates. She always said the only thing she couldn't beat me at was breaststroke," Vicki said.
A year later, Vicki represented Australia at the 1958 National Swimming Championships, winning bronze in both the 220-yard breaststroke and as part of a 440-yard medley relay team.
"It's a lovely feeling when it all goes right," she said. "You can feel the water sliding past your body and everything else just fades away."
Recently, Dawn, plus fellow gold medallist swimmer Margaret Gibson, popped in to see Vicki at her retirement village.
Read more on The Senior
"I probably should have told some other people she was coming. There were a few people afterward who came up to me and said, 'she looked familiar!," Vicki said.
Resthaven Westbourne Park resident Errol Bungey represented Australia in lawn bowls on 68 occasions. He competed in the World Championships in 1972 in England, the Commonwealth Games in Christchurch in 1974, and the Commonwealth Games in Canada in 1978. He said at the time, the nations who were seriously competitive were all part of the Commonwealth.
His big win came as part of the silver medal-winning Fours Team at the 1974 Commonwealth Games. Errol played against 20 different countries during the two-week competition, coming in second only to the New Zealand team that took home the gold.
"We actually beat New Zealand when we played them," Errol said. "But the medals were awarded on the number of wins across the competition. We lost a few games we shouldn't have, and that's what cost us first place."
But Errol is not upset - he says the experience was amazing.
"It was customary at the time to shake hands at the end of the match and swap your country pin with a competitor - everyone was very friendly."
These pins, along with his silver medal are now proudly displayed on his wall.
