Gunalda girl goes for gold
Michelle Cotter competing in the 100m women's athletics race at the Special Olympics Australian titles in 2006. A local pub's fundraising ventures have enabled one of the town's star athletes to compete against the world's best in Shanghai, China.
A young woman from Gunalda near Gympie will be leaving the quiet of a tiny country town in October for the frenzy of the world's fourth largest city.Michelle Cotter is competing in athletics in the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games.
Michelle's mother Donna says it has been tough to get Michelle to Shanghai, but the Gympie community has been very generous.
"The local Gunalda Hotel held raffles to help get us over the line," she says.
"Nearly everyone knows someone who has a child or young adult with special needs."
The Gympie region has five athletes in the Australian team, a significant achievement for a regional Queensland community.
"Gympie Special Olympics is the only regional branch with its own club house," adds Michelle, who trains there three days a week.
Special Olympics is an international non-profit organisation dedicated to empowering individuals with an intellectual disability through strengthening their physical fitness and position in society with sports training and competition.
Michelle's success has been a long journey of commitment to training, along with the efforts of her family in years of fundraising to help her realise her dream. Competing in athletics since primary school, Michelle became associated with Special Olympics Australia shortly after high school.
Now she joins the largest Australian team to compete in the games - 127 athletes competing in 11 different sports. Michelle's challenges will include the 100 and 200-metre sprints and the 4 x 100 metre relay in athletics.
Michelle has represented her region and state on many occasions winning a host of medals in athletics. She recently joined the Queensland team to compete in the Special Olympics Australian titles on the Gold Coast and took one silver and three gold medals, securing her place in the Australian team.
This experience brought far more than sporting success. It has introduced Michelle to fiancé Philip King who is also in the Australian team, competing in soccer.
"There are still a lot of people in Queensland who don't know about Special Olympics because it is not reported on as much as other sports," Philip says.
"The biggest thing about Special Olympics is the friendships. Being such good friends helps us play better."
This year will mark the 12th World Summer Games. In addition to almost 7000 athletes from 169 countries, the Special Olympics expects the games to attract 40 000 volunteers, 3500 event officials and thousands of families, spectators and journalists.
"I am so proud that Michelle is representing her country at such a prestigious sporting event," Donna says.
"These athletes deserve as many accolades as our high-profile sports people because they train just as hard and have also had to overcome the challenges of their disabilities."
Last updated November 2007