01/08/2026
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/197hEkqaVv/
🏊♀️🥇🇦🇺 46 years ago 27 July 1980, Sans Souci's 18-year-old Michelle Ford, made history by being the only non-eastern block female to win Gold at the Moscow Olympic games and Australia's only individual Gold medallist, breaking an eight-year drought. As well as gold in the 800m freestyle, she won bronze in the 200m butterfly at the Moscow Games....
She overcame more than just the East Germans to win Australia's only individual Gold Medal
She had to overcome the East German state sponsored-doping machine.
And she had to endure pressure of political interference at home and overcome a government that supported the US-led Olympic boycott as a form of protest against the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979.
A vote of just 6-5 from the AOF gave Michelle and her teammates the opportunity to go to the games.
Michelle has a strong connection to the St George area. She grew up in Sans Souci and went to St George Girls High.
Michelle broke her first world record and attended the 1976 Montreal Olympics while a student at St George Girls High School.
She was part of Dick Caine's first ever swim squad, forming the Carss Park Swimming Club that became the best swim club in the state and in Australia and remained so for many years.
Decades later, speaking about Australia's poor showing at the 2012 London Olympics, Dick was still proud of how he had coached Michelle to Olympic gold.
"Michelle Ford's 800-metre time (in 1980) was 15 seconds faster than Australia's representative in London (in 2012)," Dick said.
"She trained in cold water with no government funding, wearing a pair of $5 nylon cossies and competing in an old pool with cork lane ropes, with a coach who was an ex-garbo and doorman and who left school at 12," he said.
Being competitive by nature, Michelle first started her swimming training at six-years-of-age to prepare for the big event of the Sans Souci Public School swimming carnival.
"I may not have won but I never gave up and by 12 years, I was the fastest swimmer in the world for my age group," Michelle said.
" At 13, I was selected for my first Olympic team," she said.
Four years later, after setting two world records and winning many international titles, Michelle made history by being the only non-eastern block female to win Gold at the Moscow games.
Michelle has been one of the strongest supporters of rebuilding Carss Park Pool right from the beginning and is determined to fight for this iconic pool to be rebuilt where it is for the champions of the future.
"I was the first of many former champions, any number of whom would honour the iconic Carss Park Pool and why it should be rebuilt.
"I represent all those great champions, from all sports, that have trained through pain and agony at Carss Park Pool to conquer the world - and this is why I am so passionate about this battle for Carss Park Pool," she said.
'It was a fight to get to Moscow, but standing on the podium in front of the Australian flag with the national anthem playing made it worth it, because it meant so much to so many people," Michelle said.
"That's why I feel so strongly about saving the iconic Carss Park Pool, because it means so much to so many in the community', she said.
[Photo courtesy The Leader]
