From Big Lunch to Beijing (and back)

By Toby Longhurst

For many gays and lesbians, the school yard was an unhappy place full of teasing and not fitting in. Then when it’s done, we go out into the world, find our own little niche and school days seem like a distant memory – never to be returned to. But not for Olympic diving champion Matthew Mitcham.

The Brisbane born and bred gold medallist recently retuned home to a heroes welcome when visiting his old high school as part of the Back to School Program. A campaign that brings people from all over Australia back to their schools to share their stories and experiences.

There was a special feeling in the air as all 1500 Mansfield State High School students squeezed into the special school assembly to welcome home one of their own.

Mitcham was quiet as he walked into the room but could not hide his excitement as the packed auditorium erupted when he was presented on stage and while he relived his school days as part of a video tribute put together by the students.

At the conclusion of the video tribute, Matthew had the opportunity to speak to the students, shocking many of them with his incredible training regime whilst a student and his admission that despite an Olympic Gold Medal, he had never considered himself good at sports other than diving and trampolining.

The entire time Mitcham’s face was beaming with pride. The only time the smile was wiped of his face was when the whole school was treated to a ‘Matthew through the years’ photo collection

  “Oh it was just gross,” Mitcham explained to QNews. “I was a pimply teen like the rest of them; I could only cringe.”

He needn’t have worried. The students didn’t care and were just happy to have him there. The feeling was mutual.

“I was really excited about coming back but I was a little bit nervous at the school assembly being in the opposite role to what I remember – up on stage in front of 1,500 people rather than sitting in the sea of students.”

“I’ve only really got good memories of school which means that I have either suppressed the bad memories or nothing really terrible happened.”

“It looks even more green and vibrant than I remember it, but maybe that’s because I don’t have to do the classes and have all of that dread on my shoulders. I can actually enjoy the school environment.”

Matt may have occasionally dreaded going to class sometimes, but it certainly did not deter him from working hard. On top of enrolling in the French immersion program offered by the school (where his classes were taught only in French), the up and coming diver kept a rigorous training program that would push most people to the brink.

“I was doing two hours of training before school and three hours of training after school each weekday and then I would train again on Saturday morning.”

Despite all of his training and being an Australian representative while still at school, Matthew explained that he really wasn’t any type of jock at school and never thought he was very good at sports.

“I wasn’t good at the traditional sports like cricket, soccer, football, and all those types of sports. I was actually quite terrible.”

“I was the kid that was always picked last on teams in primary school and in high school I didn’t even bother. It was kind of lucky that I found my niche with trampolining and then diving.”

“I never would have called myself a jock; I just happened to find that thing that I was really good at and went with it.”
 
And boy did he go with it. Ironically for a diver, the only way for Matt was up. After taking a break form diving, Mitcham became one of Australia’s heroes at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, winning gold and producing the highest single-dive score in Olympic history. His life was about to change forever.

No longer was he just Matt, the boy form Brisbane who liked to dive – he became Matthew Mitcham, Olympic champion, gay icon and role model. Roles which were thrust upon him, but ones which he has accepted none the less.

“You don’t choose to be a role model but as soon as somebody looks up to you, you automatically become one. It is something that you can choose to embrace or you can ignore it, but you can’t not accept it. I choose to embrace it and be the best role model that I can be.”

“I’m still going to make mistakes but I do monitor the things that I do now, because I know I am seen as a role model and I want to be a good role model.”

Asides from Ian Roberts coming out over ten years ago, Australia did not have any well known openly gay sporting heroes. If fact, until recently Australia did not have many openly gay household names at all. So for Matthew to be so open with his sexuality, kids at his school and all other schools around the country now have somebody to look up to and realise that you can be gay and achieve your dreams with out their sexuality being an issue.

Matthew’s advice to gay kids at school? “Don’t waste your time living in denial and getting upset over it.”

“I wasn’t openly gay but I didn’t go out of my way to hide it or deny it or anything like that. I think a lot of people either knew or insinuated or guessed or whatever. I didn’t put any effort or waste any time denying or getting upset about it.”

“Because I didn’t deny it or fight it, I didn’t get hassled that much. I think it is when you keep denying it that people keep on pushing it and that’s when it becomes an issue.”

“I didn’t really get teased to anywhere near the degree that I know many other young kids at school get.”

After leaving school in 2005, Matthew now feels it is time to take on further study. He has enrolled in university and plans to continue on where he left off with the French language skills he learnt at high school.

“I love diving and have a great sponsor in Telstra, but I still need to work and do other stuff. It’s not going to pay for a house or have me live extravagantly. I don’t think I am ever going to make my living out of just being a diver, that’s why I have enrolled in university.”

“I’m enrolled to study a Bachelor of Arts & Science. I’m most interested in medical science but I left the arts there because I studied French in school – I did all subjects in French and I want to pursue the language avenue and see where I can take that.”

As for the chance of back to back gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics?

“I don’t know, don’t know. My chances reflect how well and how hard I train until then. I guess I could give a better indication the closer it gets.”