Our third and final visit to Kintore for 2009 was highlighted by the inclusion of Qantas Ambassadors Catherine Freeman and Leisel Jones for the first part of the tour.

They joined a team that included fellow Olympians Lara Davenport and Red Dust Ambassador Linley Frame, jumping right into delivery of the Lifestyle Education Program. The team worked with the school children to assist with literacy and healthy lifestyle activities based around ‘going for gold’ themes, which were the topic of their classsroom talk.

With three Olympic swimmers on board, swimming and pool safety featured greatly. In adherence to the school’s ‘No School, No Pool’ policy, the students who attended school that morning participated in the afternoon’s water-based activities with the swimmers, with all enjoying the relief from the 35-degree heat.

The Kintore community enthusiastically welcomed the new role models along with the rest of the team, whose female members were invited to participate in a traditional women’s ceremony with Kintore’s revered female elders and younger generations. This wholehearted acceptance is indicative of the trust earned through Red Dust’s many visits and continued efforts to strengthen our community relationships

The tour coincided with the culmination of the local football (AFL) Grand Final, and the Red Dust team was given the honour of presenting the Grand Final trophy to the carnival’s winning team – the beloved Kintore Hawks.

The Olympians’ visit was captured by accompanying journalists from the Herald Sun (Melbourne) and the Centralian Advocate (Alice Springs) newspapers, and received excellent coverage in both publications. A radio interview with Linley Frame was also conducted via telephone for the ABC.

With half of the group departing mid-week, the core team that remained kept busy with classroom literacy support and after-school activities that included hip-hop dancing for fun and fitness, basketball, lacrosse and organised games. The kids showed off their new dance moves at a disco held on the basketball court Thursday night – a fitting end to a full and fantastic week with our Kintore friends, before the team had to hit the dusty roads Friday for the six-hour drive back to Alice Springs.