Knowles to bear flag for Aussies
KOOKABURRAS captain Mark Knowles has pipped hometown hero Sally Pearson for the honour of Australia’s team flag-bearer at tomorrow night’s Commonwealth Games opening ceremony.
Gold Coaster Pearson, competing in her fourth Games, was overlooked for Knowles, one of Rockhampton’s favourite sporting sons who will retire after this event, also his fourth Commonwealth Games.
Known as one of the nice guys of Australian sport, he is a hockey legend, having earnt more than 300 caps for the Kookaburras in a career including Olympic gold in Athens in 2004 along with gold at the past three Commonwealth Games.
Games officials have hinted that Pearson may still feature prominently, but she had been considered an overwhelming favourite for what other opening ceremony flag-bearers yesterday described as “the biggest honour you can have”.
She grew up down the road from Carrara Stadium and is one of the Gold Coast’s most famous sporting stars, acting as an official ambassador for the Games as she chases a third straight gold medal in the 100m hurdles.
At 31, this is likely to be her last Commonwealth Games campaign.
A two-time world cham- pion and gold medallist at the London Olympics, her sporting credentials are beyond reproach, but team officials still pumped for Knowles, who lived in Perth for 14 years as part of the national program, but has returned to Brisbane and remains a proud Queenslander.
He had considered retirement after the Rio Olympics, but pushed on for one more campaign, which will see him rewarded with the honour of leading the team out in front of 35,000 screaming fans.
Former Australian flagbearers Lisa Curry-Kenny and Kieren Perkins yesterday recalled what they called one of sport’s ultimate honours.
“It’s the biggest honour you can have,” said CurryKenny, who carried the flag at the closing ceremony in Brisbane as swimming’s new golden girl, before taking the flag at the opening ceremony in Auckland eight years later.
Perkins, who held the honour in Kuala Lumpur in 1998, went even further.
“It’s beyond the ultimate,” he said.
Former 400m athletics star Rick Mitchell, who carried the flag in Brisbane’s opening ceremony 36 years ago, said it still gave him tingles to think about walking into the stadium on opening night proudly carrying the Australian flag.
“The feeling was beyond goosebumps,” Mitchell said.
“It was one of the surreal moments you never forget.”