After an outstanding performance in Tokyo 2020, where they won 17 gold medals, Australian athletes once again reached their peak in 2022.
From the tennis legend who retired in the prime of her career to the freestyle skiing expert who lit up the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, here are five of Australia’s best sporting performances from the last 12 months.
1 – Ash Barty, tennis
Australian tennis ace Ash BartyRetiring in March 2022 was a huge loss to the tennis world and came in the year she had just won her third Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January.
The 26-year-old won bronze with him in the mixed doubles tournament at Tokyo 2020 Jan Peersbeat the US Danielle Collins in 6-3, 7-6 in the Australian Open final, adding to his titles at the 2019 French Open and 2021 Wimbledon tournaments.
Barty was still No. 1 in the world when she made the decision to retire from the sport and become the first Australian in 44 years to win a Grand Slam at home.
“[I’m] I’m retiring from tennis,” she announced on her Instagram account. “It’s hard to say, but I’m very happy and ready. And I just know right now in my heart for me as a person that this is the right thing to do. I am very grateful for everything tennis has given me. It gave me all my dreams and more. But I know it’s time for me to go and chase all my dreams anyway and put the rockets down. “
Moments | Beijing 2022 – Gold Medal – Freestyle Skiing – J. Anthony
2 – Jakara Anthony, freestyle skiing
Australia left the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing with one gold medal and this lone victory was theirs Jakara Anthony.
The freestyle skiing mogul put on an amazing display in the People’s Republic of China, leading all qualifiers and not losing first place, becoming Australia’s first ever gold medalist in this discipline.
And although her Olympic gold was the highlight of Australia’s participation in the Winter Games, Anthony is not done yet. She also added overall world titles and world titles to her résumé to round off an exceptional 2022.
Scotty James: How Shaun White set an example for me
3 – Scotty James, snowboard
Four years after winning the bronze medal in the snowboard halfpipe at PyeongChang 2018, Scotty James went one better with silver at Beijing 2022.
The 28-year-old three-time world champion performed brilliantly in China, second only to the Japanese. Hirano Ayumu and two places ahead of the halfpipe legend Shaun White.
While silver in Beijing was one of Team Australia’s most important matches, James has even bigger goals when it comes to Milano Cortina in 2026.
“I got bronze (at PyeongChang 2018), now I got silver,” he said after the Beijing Games. “There’s only one left to get, so that’s the plan: complete the collection in Italy (at Milan-Cortina 2026) and it’s one of my favorite countries.
“I’ve already started the process, but for now, I’m going to enjoy it. I’m still very young, I still have a lot of vision, I’m still motivated.”
4 – Mollie O’Callaghan, swimming
The Australian swimmer has been around for a year now Mollie O’Callaghan. After winning two gold relays last year at Tokyo 2020, the 18-year-old won 17 medals in 2022 at the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games.
O’Callghan’s victory in the 100m freestyle at this year’s World Championships in Budapest made her the youngest woman in 30 years to accomplish the feat. She was also part of the Australian teams that in 2022 broke two long track world records (4x100m mixed freestyle relay and 4x200m freestyle relay) and three short track world records (4x100m freestyle relay, 4x200m freestyle relay and 4x200m freestyle relay) 4 x 50m individual medley).
Her impressive progress also saw her named Olympic Swimmer of the Year at the 2022 Swimming Australia Awards.
Eleanor Patterson: From throwing the high jump to world champion
5 – Eleanor Patterson, athletics
After winning the 2014 Commonwealth Games gold medal at the age of 18, the high jumper Eleanor Patterson retired from the sport at the age of 22.
However, 12 months later, with a new coaching staff, she began to return to the higher echelons of athletics.
Then at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon, Patterson became only Australia’s 10th World Athletics Champion in athletics history when she won with a jump of 2.02 m.
“I feel like this was a pivotal moment in my career,” Patterson told Olympics.com, reflecting on her win in Oregon. “Who would have thought that sitting on this couch in 2018, I would be sitting here now.
“If you had told me that, I wouldn’t have believed you.” I still don’t believe you, I still don’t believe what happened!
