So nonetheless given the importance that was placed on sport in Australia, I wanted to be part of that scene, particularly since I had felt very strongly in my early schooling being marginalised even in the Catholic school.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I didn't play a great deal of sport in primary school. It was not until I went away to boarding school in Sussex that I really got into sport.
I'm definitely Australian and wouldn't have it any other way. I've been formed as an athlete in Australia.
In a world as competitive as ours, the child who does not get a decent education is condemned to the fringes of society. I think all Australians agree that this is intolerable. So we must demand as much of our schools as we do of our sports teams - and ensure that they keep the Australian dream alive for every child.
When I was rising eighteen I persuaded my parents to let me return to Australia and at least see whether I could adapt myself to life on the land before going up to Cambridge.
I had a very ordinary background in Sheffield; I went to a secondary modern, but I saw something on TV in 1968 that inspired me to join an athletics club, and 12 years later, with great coaching and the support of people who loved me a lot, I ended up at an Olympic Games.
Even though arguably I could have done much better at school, I'd decided at a young age that I was going to be a professional sportsman at some sport. And at that stage, there was a bit of luck: I was fortunate to meet the right people at the right time to get me to where I am now.
As a youngster, I enjoyed sport and my ambition was to be a great sportsman.
My parents couldn't handle my energy so they enrolled me in every sport the school was offering. I didn't resent it because I loved sports and picked them up easily.
I went to an all boys' school in South London and the only god was sport.
Growing up, I was like any Aussie kid - you know we love our sport - that was my favourite subject at school. That is a subject, right?