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Fantastic Freeman Cathy’s courage inspires a nation
Even from a distance, I was moved by Cathy Freeman's memorable gold-medal in the women's 400 meters at the Olympics.
It was kind of surreal to see a descendant from Australia's ancient Aborigines, wearing a futuristic full-body suit and powering to victory down the final straight in a jam-packed stadium that hadn't even been conceived seven years earlier.
The fact that two-time defending champion Marie-Jose Perec, from France, had sensationally withdrawn from the race took absolutely nothing away from Freeman's victory in 49.11 seconds.
The under-prepared Perec wouldn't have stood a chance in such an arena and probably would have finished out of the medals in fourth or fifth. One of the Sydney newspapers got it right with its headline: "Mademoiselle La Chicken".
Freeman has handled the pressure of being Australia's most high-profile Aborigine with aplomb and is inspiring people of all colors in the land Down Under.
It was a masterstroke by organizers to get the 27-year-old to light the Olympic cauldron at the opening ceremony. Now she's produced Australia's first track and field gold medal since the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
I was quick to gauge reactions from friends and family in Sydney to a performance that promises to help speed the process of reconciliation between white and black Australians.
My brother, Matthew Dasey, a 36-year-old marine biologist near Sydney, echoed the sentiments of many white Aussies.
"Carrying the Aboriginal flag on an Olympic gold medal victory lap is worth a hundred whining speeches on indigenous rights," Matthew said.
These were the thoughts of my old school friend, Marcus Kringas, a 38-year-old executive in the fruit industry in Sydney: "I think it was marvelous. It had everything. It had an Australian winning a gold medal and it had the Australian national anthem played in front of the largest crowd to ever witness a day at the Olympics. Unbelievable!"
Aborigines have long portrayed themselves as victims, wallowing in their own pain and self-pity and all because of the injustices of white society.
There is no argument that Australia's white settlers -- and governments that followed -- did many despicable and unforgivable acts that demoralized certain sections of the Aboriginal population.
But far more valuable than forced apologies from the current Australian authorities and cash and land pay-outs to Aborigines, is a black success story like Cathy Freeman. It shows the Aboriginal population that despite all the suffering and misery, modern-day dreams can come true in a predominantly white society.
Australia has had other black sporting role models, most notably the Ella brothers of Rugby during the 1980s.
Mark, Gary and Glenn Ella were talented players from a working class area of Sydney. All of them played in the backline and were known for their magical hands and quick feet. Mark became Australian captain and, with Gary and Glenn in the team, led the Wallabies to a first-ever grand-slam winning tour of the British Isles in 1984.
The Ella brothers helped establish an exciting running game that became the trademark of World Cup winning Australian teams in 1991 and 1999.
But in a more mainstream sport like track and field and with the eyes of the world watching, Freeman has taken Aboriginal success and leadership a step further.
Most significantly, she captured the gold medal for all Australians, black and white, who will always remember that winning smile on a cool September evening in Sydney.
Australian-born Jason Dasey is an Atlanta-based anchor for World Sport, a 30-minute sports news and highlights program, shown on CNN-International and CNNSI.
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