By Brendan Rees
Students of St Peter’s College in Cranbourne received an inspiring visit from a Rio Olympic team athlete last week.
Track and Field athlete Melissa Duncan from Knox Athletics and the Victorian Institute of Sport shared her story and what it takes to be an elite athlete on Tuesday, 8 May.
The 28-year-old spoke about how she didn’t like sport as a teenager, admitting she wasn’t very good at it.
Melissa found her passion in running after tagging along with her sister to a sports event, and to her surprise the more she trained and competed the better she was at it.
She instilled a message to students that they can achieve anything they want if they put in enough dedication.
“Give everything a try, you never know what sport or event you may love and in turn excel at,” she told the students. “You never know where your love for a sport and your ability will come from.”
Melissa’s visit formed part of a winning prize to the school after signing up for the 2018 Premiers Active April and achieving high participation rates and outstanding results.
St Peter’s College spokeswoman April Hampson said Melissa shared some inspiring tips, including overcoming adversity.
“Melissa then went on to tell how stress fractures in her foot have derailed her training and competing schedule over a number of years with the devastating withdrawal from the Rio Olympic Team due to a fracture and torn ligament in her foot just a few months out from competition,” she said.
“No matter how many times and how long her recovery, she works towards is regaining her fitness and competing at the highest level again.”
In her closing message, Melissa said: “I love what I do, I am so lucky to be able to train and compete in Australia throughout the summer and then just as winter sets in I go to Europe and train and compete there throughout their summer.”
Melissa’s most recent achievement includes coming sixth in the 1500 metre run at the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Portland, USA.
