Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Dylan Alcott’s latest sporting honour is a powerful full-circle moment and something that would have blown the mind of his younger self.
Alcott is among this year’s seven inductees into the Sport Australia Hall Of Fame, who will be honoured at the organisation’s annual dinner and awards ceremony on November 24.
The wheelchair sports great will go into the hall of fame along with Winter Olympics gold medallist Dale Begg-Smith, cricketer Lisa Sthalekar, surf lifesaving’s Shannon Eckstein, four-time Olympic softball medallist Natalie Ward and basketballer Sandy Brondello.
They will be inducted as athlete members, while Olympic hockey silver medallist Barry Dancer will join as a general member – he coached the Kookaburras to their only Olympic gold medal.
Their inductions come amid much change at Sport Australia – Steve Hooker has taken over from long-time chair John Bertrand and the annual function has moved from the MCG to nearby Melbourne Park.
The new venue makes his induction even more special for Alcott.
“This is the first place where I ever watched sport – coming to the Australia Open, to watch tennis,” he said at Wednesday’s announcement.
“I’m so grateful for it.
“I’m not very often lost for words, but when I got the call, I couldn’t believe it.”
Amid Alcott’s many sporting achievements, he is the only player to win the men’s golden slam in a calendar year – the Tokyo Paralympics, plus the four grand slam tournaments.
But Alcott said the highlight of his decorated wheelchair tennis career, after he had won Paralympic gold in basketball, was the first time he played on Rod Laver Arena at the Australian Open.
“For some reason, it was a full stadium. But more importantly, there were probably 500 kids in wheelchairs there – that was the best moment in my career,” Alcott said.
“It I could tell little Dylan, who used to hate himself because he was disabled, that he was going to get (this honour) one day – he wouldn’t believe it.”
There were similar “pinch-me” anecdotes from the other four greats at Wednesday’s announcement. Brondello and Begg-Smith are overseas.
Hockey has been Dancer’s life, but he raised a laugh when asked if he still plays.
“I was asked to find a hockey stick for a photo shoot – and I couldn’t,” he said with a grin.
Likewise, all those years of training left their mark on Eckstein, who won a record eight Australian Ironman titles in surf lifesaving.
“I love the ocean, but we did a lot of work in the pool and I hate the swimming pool now,” Eckstein said.
Sthalekar reflected on the extra meaning of her last international game, when Australian regained the women’s ODI World Cup title in Mumbai.
“It was being played at a ground where my father first went and fell in love with the game. So to finish my career at that same ground was really special,” she said.
Ward captained Australia and played 429 internationals. After three Olympic bronze and a silver medal, the shortstop said that elusive top step of the podium was what kept her at the top level for so long.
“It was a drive to want to go on and do one better, each time, each Olympics,” Ward said.
“We never got there with the Olympic gold medal, but that’s definitely what motivated me.”
Three current members will be elevated to legend status at next month’s dinner, which also will feature the Don and Dawn annual award winners.
