| Full name | Carin Lydia Clonda | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Australia | ||||||||||||||
| Born | 1 March 1961 Manly, New South Wales, Australia | ||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 5 (January 1984) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||
| Last updated: 10 December 2015. | |||||||||||||||
Carin Lydia Clonda (born 1 March 1961) is an Australian former professional squash player and sports administrator.
Clonda was born in the Sydney suburb of Manly, to an Estonian mother and Romanian father.[ citation needed ]
She was introduced to squash at the age of 13, and began to play competitively, winning the Australian Under-16 title after playing for two years. In 1978 she won the New South Wales and Australian Junior Women's Championships in the Under-15, Under-16 and Under-17 age groups. In the same year, she was diagnosed with chronic asthma, and took eighteen months off to undergo respiratory treatment, but resumed playing after gaining weight due to the treatment. [1]
In 1979, she became the de facto under-19 world champion when she won the British Junior Women's Open, there being no higher championship in that age range. [2]
From 2005 to 2009, Clonda was the CEO and director of NSW Squash, the organisation which develops, organises and promotes the sport of squash in New South Wales. She also managed the organisation's squash facilities at the Thornleigh Squash Centre. [3]
She has served as a squash administrator and manager for several major sporting events including the 2002 Gay Games in Sydney, [4] and the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. [5]
In 2010, Clonda founded the Australian Squash Group, a non-profit consultancy group, with fellow squash champion David Palmer. [6]
In 2012, Clonda was involved in a court dispute with NSW Squash and Justice Michael Pembroke of the Supreme Court of New South Wales ruled against her company. As a result of the court judgement, the Governor-General cancelled her award of the Medal of the Order of Australia. [6]
Between 2012 and 2016, Clonda filed three claims against NSW Squash Ltd that were subsequently settled between the parties.[ citation needed ]
In addition to chronic asthma, Clonda experienced numerous health issues during her sporting career, but continued to compete regardless. In 1989, she underwent surgery to remove a tumour from her leg, and then spinal fusion surgery which held a risk of permanent paralysis. [1]
She then experienced chronic fatigue syndrome and the resulting damage to her immune system saw her deal with worsening asthma, infections, a dislocated pelvis and recurrence of her tumour. [1]
In 2009 Clonda underwent bilateral hip replacements. In 2016 Clonda suffered a heart attack.[ citation needed ]
Clonda was the first professional squash player to come out as gay, and says she experienced considerable hostility—although more from outside the squash community than within it. In 2008, she was a "Games Champion" of the first AsiaPacific Outgames held in Melbourne. [7]
In 2000, Clonda was awarded the Australian Sports Medal, with the citation "NSW & Australian Representative 1978–1985. Australian & British Junior Champion". [8]
In 2008, she was awarded the Sue Fear Award, named after mountaineer Sue Fear, for courage and achievement in overcoming serious illness to be successful in competitive squash. [1]
In 2010, she was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM), but the award was revoked in 2013 after an adverse finding in a court dispute. [9]
Catherine Astrid Salome Freeman is an Aboriginal Australian former sprinter, who specialised in the 400 metres event. Her personal best of 48.63 seconds currently ranks her as the ninth-fastest woman of all time, set while finishing second to Marie-José Pérec's number-four time at the 1996 Olympics. She became the Olympic champion for the women's 400 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics, at which she lit the Olympic Flame.
Dawn Fraser is an Australian freestyle champion swimmer, eight-time olympic medallist, a 15-year world record holder in the 100-metre freestyle, and former politician. Controversial, yet the winner of countless honours, she has enjoyed national prominence and sparked national pride in Australia. She is one of only four swimmers to have won the same Olympic individual event three times – in her case the women's 100-metre freestyle.
Michelle Susan Martin is an Australian former professional squash player who was one of the game's leading players in the 1990s. She was ranked number one in the world from 1993 to 1996 and again in 1998 and 1999, and won three World Open titles and six British Open titles.
Heather Pamela McKay is an Australian retired squash player, who is considered by many to be the greatest female player in the history of the game. She dominated the women's squash game in the 1960s and 1970s, winning 16 consecutive British Open titles from 1962 to 1977, and capturing the inaugural women's World Open title in 1976, while remaining undefeated during that period. She was also a top-level player of other sports, including field hockey and racquetball.
Alix Louise Sauvage, OAM is an Australian paralympic wheelchair racer and leading coach.
Brent James Livermore OAM is a field hockey midfielder from Australia. He was first selected in the Australian team in 1997, and was awarded the Kookaburras player of the year award in 2001. He was also nominated of the FIH Player of the Year awards in 2002 and 2005. He has played over 300 matches for the Australian team, and has scored 30 international goals. He plays for the NSW Waratahs in the Australian Hockey League.
Alyson Regina Annan is an Australian field hockey coach and retired field hockey player, who earned a total number of 228 international caps for the Women's National Team, in which she scored 166 goals. Since 2022, she is also the current head coach of the China women's national field hockey team.
Lara Shiree Davenport OAM in 2006, she relocated to Kingscliff, Northern NSW to train with at the High Performance Institute – New South Wales Institute of Sport by Greg Salter. During her Olympic pursuit Lara was the Ambassador for Pacific Hoists. She completed her Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology) at Bond University. She is currently the Chair of the Queensland Olympic Council Education Commission and a member of the Victorian Olympic Council Education Commission.
The Brett Whiteley Travelling Art Scholarship is an Australian annual art award in honour of the painter Brett Whiteley. The scholarship is administered by the Art Gallery of New South Wales.
The Northern Sydney Freight Corridor (NSFC) was a project to improve access between Sydney and Newcastle for freight trains. Frequent passenger services operate on the Main Northern line between Strathfield and Broadmeadow. These passenger services take priority, meaning freight trains can be delayed and are subject to a curfew during peak hours. The Northern Sydney Freight Corridor aimed to reduce delays and increase capacity by providing additional train paths. The delivery of the NSFC projects was managed by Transport for NSW, with the exception of the Hexham freight loop which was delivered in June 2012 by the Australian Rail Track Corporation. The final stage was completed in June 2016.
Liesl Dorothy Tesch AM is an Australian wheelchair basketball player, sailor, and politician. She is a Labor Party member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, representing Gosford since the 2017 Gosford state by-election.
Amy Louise Winters, OAM is an arm amputee Australian Paralympic athlete. She won seven medals at three Paralympic Games, including five gold medals.
Tracy Lee Barrell, OAM is a triple congenital amputee Paralympic swimmer from Australia. She won two gold medals at the 1992 Barcelona Games. She is a strong advocate for people with disabilities and an indigenous Australian.
Jacqueline Rose "Jacqui" Freney is an Australian Paralympic swimmer. At the 2012 London Games, she broke Siobhan Paton's Australian record of six gold medals at a single Games by winning her seventh gold medal in the Women's 400 m Freestyle S7. She finished the Games with eight gold medals, more than any other participant in the Games.
Maddison Gae Elliott, is an Australian swimmer. At the 2012 Summer Paralympics in London, she became the youngest Australian Paralympic medallist by winning bronze medals in the women's 400 m and 100 m freestyle S8 events. She then became the youngest Australian gold medallist when she was a member of the women's 4 × 100 m freestyle relay 34 points team. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, she won three gold and two silver medals.
Lauren Parker is an Australian para-triathlete and para-cyclist. She won a silver medal at the 2020 Summer Paralympics and gold medal at the 2024 Summer Paralympics.
Peter David William Wright is an Australian born Squash Champion and sports administrator/entrepreneur.
Babette Alison Smith was an Australian colonial historian, mediator and business executive. She wrote books about the convicts transported to Australia.
Carissa Leanne Tombs is a former Australian netball player. Having played for Australia 91 times, she is her country's seventh-most capped international. She won three World Netball Championships, in 1991, 1995 and 1999, and one Commonwealth Games gold medal in 1998.
