Wilson’s River, Lismore

In the next couple of years, I’ll likely be taking a step back from full-time work and embracing semi-retirement.

As I transition, I’ve started the fascinating and sometimes daunting process of sifting through the ABC Radio archives—particularly the early work that has now been digitised to rediscover moments of my on-air career.

On top of that, I’ve got a treasure trove of content sitting on hundreds of cassette tapes and DATs in boxes at home.

The exciting part is how effortless it is now to dive into that analogue archive: finding a specific clip, generating a transcript, and pulling out the best bits is simple, opening up a world of old material.

I had the privilege of meeting and interviewing the Australian swimming legend Dawn Fraser on a number of occasions. Today, I’m sharing one such interview from the time leading up to the announcement that Sydney would host the 2000 Olympics.

Dawn Fraser explained her upcoming move from Sydney’s Balmain to the Riverina town of Barellan was primarily driven by the people and her health, specifically to avoid the city’s pollution and allergens that aggravate her asthma, which had recently led to emergency hospital visits.

She said she would continue with paid guest speaking under her Sydney agent and was looking at semi-retirement, having bought a three hundred-acre property where she planned to put on stock, leveraging the help and advice of her new neighbours, and supporting her daughter who had just been accepted as a swimming coach in nearby Narrandera.

She was optimistic about Sydney’s bid for the 2000 Olympics, citing its superior technical and security packages. She also addressed the persistent myth about the Tokyo Olympic flag incident, denying the popular version of the story.

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JAMES O’BRIEN: Well, it’s only a matter of weeks now until we find out whether or not Sydney will host the year two thousand Olympics. But the region is about to gain its own contact with the games. Former Olympian and parliamentarian Dawn Fraser is packing her bags later this year, leaving Sydney from Balmain to Barellan, east of Griffith, the hometown also of that other great sporting achiever, Evonne Goolagong. She’s in Barellan at the moment and is my guest this morning. Dawn Fraser, thank you very much for your time this morning and welcome to the program and welcome to the region.

DAWN FRASER: Well, thank you, James, and I’m very happy to be here, I must admit.

JAMES O’BRIEN: What do you think of the two thousand Olympic bid? Do you think we’re going to be successful?

DAWN FRASER: I think that we’re very successful. In fact, I think the other cities now are getting very aware of Sydney’s bid. And their technical bid is the best that the IOC, which is International Olympic Committee have ever seen. And I think that’s probably what will win the Sydney bid.

JAMES O’BRIEN: But that’s that’s the technical things. And of course you’ve been to just about every Olympic Games since then. Is it always the the technical things which wins or does politics also play a role in this.

DAWN FRASER: Oh, politics always play a role in the Olympic Games, of course. But I think technical and security that our security right throughout the world is the best in, in Australia. And also, you know, our technical is probably, as I said before, the best that the IOC have ever seen.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Since you began at the games back in the early sixties. What sort of changes have there been to the games?

DAWN FRASER: Well, for instance, uh, the hosting country now, uh, prepares and looks after quite a lot of third world countries. In fact, uh, you know, in, in nineteen eighty, we looked after Zimbabwe. We took the whole team. Australia, I’m saying took the whole team to Moscow. And then we looked after them as far as medical, uh, physiotherapists, coaches and trainers. Uh, since then and last year in Barcelona, we had three South African countries that we looked after.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Terrific. Now, in terms of actually moving to the area, what has prompted this move from Balmain to Barellan?

DAWN FRASER: Well, first of all, let me say it’s been the people. And secondly, may I say it’s been my health. Um, and also, you know, the fact that it starts with a B, I think coming.

JAMES O’BRIEN: From.

DAWN FRASER: Them.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Yes. I’ve been noticing in the paper the last year that you’ve been making quite a few visits to the area and especially being involved with the swimming club.

DAWN FRASER: Yes. Well, I’ve, I’ve actually been coming down to Barellan now for the last seven years with the, with the Barellan Swimming Club, and last year they made me a life member. Um, so, you know, the kids are from around the area and surrounding areas have improved greatly over the last seven years. And of course, you know, we’ve been a bit of a very competitive club now. And I think my daughter has just been accepted as the swimming coach at Narrandera. So there’s going to be a lot of competition around the area. And I think that’s going to be very good for this particular region.

JAMES O’BRIEN: But you mentioned, for example, your health and there is that the issue of the asthma. We’ve just had some figures come out the other week showing that this area has a high rate of asthma. So I’m just wondering why you’re moving to this area if you’ve got to avoid asthma.

DAWN FRASER: Well, it’s very interesting because the things that I’m allergic to only happen in the city. For instance, I’m allergic to, uh, to yeast and, uh, and and pollution, air conditioning. Well, you don’t need that very much out here in the country. And, uh, and we haven’t got the pollution out here that that’s in the city. The pollution around Sydney has been so great in the last, and it’s been increasing in the last two years. But, uh, any sort of virus that I get just increases my asthma. So I think, and I feel that I’ve got to do something about it. I enjoy living, and I don’t want to sort of, uh, be overtaken by the particular sickness. So I think it’s better if I do that.

JAMES O’BRIEN: So you’ve had some substantial problems the last couple of years. Have you in Sydney?

DAWN FRASER: Yes, I certainly have. I mean, uh, you know, over the last three and a half years, I’ve had two emergency sort of dashes to the local hospital. And, uh, and that’s been sort of, uh, a bit frightening. And it’s made me sit up and be aware of the situation that I’m in.

JAMES O’BRIEN: I’m just wondering, though, what you all do. I mean, are you looking at a career in politics? Would you would you like to be the member for Murrumbidgee or or are you looking at a hotel or what will you do in Barellan?

DAWN FRASER: Well, I still I still will be, um, under control of my agent in Sydney, and I still will do guest speaking positions, which I will be. I get paid for doing those things. And then, you know, I am looking at a semi-retirement sort of thing. And with the three hundred acres that, um, that I’m looking at at the moment here in Barellan, well, I’ve put some stock on that. And then, uh, you know, I think that semi-retirement is going to be good. My daughter’s going, as I said, going to be working at Narrandera. And if she goes very well out there, which I think she will, it’s about time she started looking after mum.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Now you’re putting some stock on the land. I mean, do you have a background in farming at all?

DAWN FRASER: No, I don’t, but I have a lot of very good friends here in Barellan that help me. And you know, I’ve been learning a lot over the last two or three years since I’ve been here, and I do know a little bit about it. And I have spent a lot of time on, on, on land. You know, when I went to Adelaide to live, I had forty five acres at a place called prospect.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Oh, yes.

DAWN FRASER: And I had some cattle and sheep, and I looked after the, the land by sowing it and putting pulling trees down and putting trees up and with a tractor and stuff like that. So I’m not afraid of the hard work that I know is in store for me. And while I’m healthy and things like that which I am when I come out here, I can’t see any hassles. And, you know, as I said, the people of Barellan have been very good to us and we’ve fitted in and I think we’ve been accepted into the community, which is a big plus and it’s just a matter of, um, of asking the right people for the advice and going off and doing it yourself. If you make mistakes, you then go back and ask advice again.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Now I’ve been meaning. I’ve been wanting to actually chat with you ever since. Late last year when I interviewed a fellow on the morning program about their memories of the Olympic Games, and this fellow said that it wasn’t you who climbed up the flagpole and stole that flag in Tokyo. It was in fact, him.

DAWN FRASER: Well, if that guy was named Desmond and he came from, um, from Western Australia, which I don’t think he was, it wasn’t him at all, because.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Was it a fellow called Peter Hawkins?

DAWN FRASER: No, it was not.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Who was it?

DAWN FRASER: Uh, well, actually, it was Des Piper from Western Australia, and he was in the Australian hockey team. So I don’t know the guy that, in fact, I. Someone sent me the, uh, the paper clipping of the Wagga Wagga news.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Oh, yes.

DAWN FRASER: I wrote back to the editor and just said, you know, that this isn’t the true story, and please tell the person that he stopped using my name.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Oh, dear.

DAWN FRASER: Because it wasn’t correct. Yeah. But I mean, you know, everyone sort of has dinners on those sort of stories. And they say that they know they know those people. In fact, the the flag wasn’t taking anywhere near anyone else. There was only three of us. And those three people know who they were.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Okay, Dawn, thank you very much. And welcome to the area. Thank you.

DAWN FRASER: James, thanks very much.

JAMES O’BRIEN: Dawn Fraser, who’s moving to the area from Balmain to Barellan. My guest this morning on the morning show and you’re listening to ABC Radio Riverina, James O’Brien with you until eleven.