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Dawn Fraser (born 4 September 1937) 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. Dawn Fraser . sports-reference.com
She is the first of only four swimmers in Olympic history (Hungarian Krisztina Egerszegi and Americans Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky being the three others) to have won individual gold medals for the same event at three successive Olympics (100 metres freestyle – 1956, 1960, 1964).
In October 1962, she became the first woman to swim the 100 metres freestyle in less than one minute setting the record of 59.9, a feat that elevated her to national prominence and made her a hero in Australia where swimming was a popular sport. It was not until 1972, eight years after Fraser retired, that her 100 m record of 58.9 secs was broken.
Several weeks before the 1964 Olympics, Fraser was injured in a car crash that injured a vertebra and resulted in the death of her mother Rose. Her sister and a friend were also travelling in Fraser's car during the accident, but survived. This was a fresh tragedy for Fraser and her family following her older brother's death from leukemia in 1950, and her father's death from cancer in 1960.
Fraser later denied having swum the moat to steal the flag, telling The Times in 1991: "There's no way I would have swum that moat. I was terrified of dirty water and that moat was filthy. There's no way I'd have dipped my toe in it." The Australian Amateur Swimming Association banned Fraser from competitive swimming for 10 years.
In 1988, Fraser was elected as an independent to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for the seat of Balmain. The Balmain electorate was abolished in 1991, and after failing to win the new seat of Port Jackson, she retired from politics.
Fraser is the great-aunt of Canadian soccer player Danielle Steer.
In 2015, during an interview on the Today program, Fraser was asked about recent behaviour of Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon and Bernard Tomic’s comments about Tennis Australia, which resulted in Tomic being removed from the Davis Cup team. Fraser said, "They should be setting a better example for the younger generation of this country ... If they don’t like it, go back to where their fathers or their parents came from". (Kyrgios is of Malay people and Greek people ancestry, while Tomic is of Croats extraction.) Kyrgios responded by describing her as a "blatant racist", and Fraser's comments were criticised by Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane. Fraser "unreservedly" apologised for her comments.
Fraser was played by Melissa Thomas in the 2003 film Swimming Upstream. Fraser herself is credited in the film as Dawn Fraser's coach.
On 1 September 2015, Dawn Fraser featured on Season 7, Episode 5, of the SBS genealogy television series Who Do You Think You Are?, which traced her heritage back to South America.
She was one of the bearers of the Olympic Torch at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. She carried the Olympic Torch at the stadium, as one of the bearers for the final segment, before the lighting of the Olympic Flame.
The Australian Sport Awards includes an award named in honour of and presented by Fraser. The harbourside baths in Balmain where she swam were named the Dawn Fraser Swimming Pool in her honour in 1964, and in 1992, the State Transit Authority named a Sydney RiverCats after Fraser.
She was inducted onto the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2001.
As part of the 2018 Queen's Birthday Honours she was advanced to a Companion of the Order of Australia (AC).
In 2022, she was an inaugural inductee of the Swimming Australia Hall of Fame.
1964 Summer Olympics incidents and ban from swimming
During the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Fraser angered swimming team sponsors and the Australian Swimming Union (ASU) by marching in the opening ceremony against their wishes (it was too close to the competition date), and wearing a swimming costume from the competitor of the sponsor in competition, as she found it more comfortable. She was also accused of stealing an Olympic flag from a flagpole outside Hirohito's palace, the Kōkyo. She was arrested but released without charge. In the end she was given the flag as a souvenir.
Post-swimming activities
Fraser became a at the Riverview Hotel, Balmain, and took up swim coaching.
Personal life
Fraser married Gary Ware on 30 January 1965 at St Stephen’s Church, Macquarie Street, Sydney. The marriage was short-lived. She has one daughter from the marriage, who has a son. She and her family live in Noosa on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. This move north from Sydney to the warmer, subtropical climate of Noosa was intended to reduce the breathing problems caused by Fraser's asthma, as the warmer air and increased vitamin D from sunlight are beneficial for the condition.
Controversies
Political and racial views
In 1997, Fraser told the ABC: "I mean I wish I could be as outspoken, I suppose, as Pauline Hanson and say, 'look, I'm sick and tired of the immigrants that are coming into my country.'" Fraser also stated her interest in joining Hanson's One Nation Party.
In popular culture
In 1979, a movie called Dawn! was made about Fraser's life and career. It starred Bronwyn Mackay-Payne as Fraser.
Honours
Lauded as an Australian hero, Fraser was named the Australian of the Year in 1964, was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in 1965, was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) using her married name Dawn Ware in 1967, It's an Honour: MBE and was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1998. It's an Honour – Officer of the Order of Australia She was named Australian Female Athlete of the Century by the Sport Australia Hall of Fame, who had inducted her as their first female member in 1985. In 1999 the International Olympic Committee named her the World's Greatest Living Female Water Sports Champion. On 14 July 2000, Fraser was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for "outstanding contribution as a swimming competitor".
Olympic accomplishments
Event Time Place 1:02.0 WR 5:02.5 Silver 4:17.1 WR 1:01.2 OR 4:58.5 5th 4:11.3 Silver 4:45.9 Silver 59.5 OR 4:47.6 4th 4:06.9 Silver 4:52.3 9th
See also
External links
Categories: Official Website, 1937 Births, Australian Female Freestyle Swimmers, Olympic Swimmers For Australia, Swimmers From Sydney, Swimmers At The 1956 Summer Olympics, Swimmers At The 1960 Summer Olympics, Swimmers At The 1964 Summer Olympics, Swimmers At The 1958 British Empire And Commonwealth Games, Swimmers At The 1962 British Empire And Commonwealth Games, Olympic Gold Medalists For Australia, Olympic Silver Medalists For Australia, Commonwealth Games Gold Medallists For Australia, Commonwealth Games Swimmers For Australia, Commonwealth Games Gold Medallists In Swimming, Commonwealth Games Silver Medallists For Australia, Commonwealth Games Silver Medallists In Swimming, World Record Setters In Swimming, Australian Sportsperson-politicians, Independent Members Of The Parliament Of New South Wales, Members Of The New South Wales Legislative Assembly, Australian Autobiographers, Australian Of The Year Award Winners, Companions Of The Order Of Australia, Australian Members Of The Order Of The British Empire, Recipients Of The Australian Sports Medal, Sport Australia Hall Of Fame Inductees, Living People, Australian Women Autobiographers, Medalists At The 1964 Summer Olympics, Medalists At The 1960 Summer Olympics, Medalists At The 1956 Summer Olympics, Olympic Gold Medalists In Swimming, Olympic Silver Medalists In Swimming, Women Members Of The New South Wales Legislative Assembly, Medallists At The 1958 British Empire And Commonwealth Games, Medallists At The 1962 British Empire And Commonwealth Games, Sportswomen From New South Wales, 20th-century Australian Sportswomen
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