The Games of the XXXIIII Olympiad mark the return of the Summer Olympics to Paris after 100 years. Games organisers are also working towards the ambitious goal of halving the carbon footprint of the Games compared with the average for London 2012 and Rio 2016.
There will be 460 Australian athletes heading to the French capital, preparing to test their mettle against the world’s best. Among them is Rachael 'Raygun' Gunn, an alumna and lecturer at Macquarie University, who will compete in breaking. She is one of 16 women competing in the sport’s Olympic debut, which starts on 9 August. Dr Gunn is an interdisciplinary and practice-based researcher interested in the cultural politics of breaking, and a lecturer in the Department of Media, Communications, Creative Arts, Language and Literature.
Lachlan Bayliss, a Bachelor of Professional Accounting student (class of 2026) at Macquarie, heads to Paris as a travelling reserve with the OlyWhites, New Zealand’s national under-23 football team. In Australia, Bayliss is a midfielder for the Newcastle Jets in the A-League.
Ella Beere, a Bachelor of Psychology student (class of 2024), will represent Australia in the canoe sprint, which begins on 6 August. Beere and her crew’s success at the 2023 world championships secured their place at the Paris Olympics, where they will contest the women’s K-4 500m. Beere’s passion for psychology was sparked by challenges she has experienced as an elite athlete.
Macquarie alumna Dominique du Toit will compete in rugby sevens in Paris. Du Toit has been part of the Australian women’s rugby sevens team since 2016 and represented her country at both the 2020 Olympics and the 2022 Commonwealth Games while studying a Bachelor of Media and Communications at Macquarie.
Cameron McEntyre will make his Olympic debut in Paris when he lines up for the javelin throw on 6 August. The 25-year-old has been a prominent figure in Australian athletics since clinching the 2022 national title and, one month later, cracking the Australian all-time top 10. He has represented Australia at two World Championships and a Commonwealth Games. McEntyre graduated from Macquarie University in 2021 with a Bachelor of Human Sciences, majoring in Human Movement.
Hockey star and Macquarie alumnus Thomas Craig (Bachelor of Laws 2021) returns to the Olympic stage this year after collecting a silver medal as a member of the Kookaburras at Tokyo 2020. Among his achievements with the Australian team, Craig won gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast and at the Champions Trophy the same year.
Melissa Wu, a former Macquarie University student, is set to make history in Paris as one of only a handful of Australian athletes and the only diver to compete at five Olympic Games. Aged just 16, Wu made her Olympic debut in Beijing in 2008, where she won a silver medal, and has since competed at London 2012 (fourth), Rio 2016 (fifth) and Tokyo 2020 (bronze).
Pete Boyle, CEO of Campus Life, says the University has been proud to support these athletes during their time at Macquarie and to see them progress to this sporting pinnacle.
“We are immensely proud to see several members of the Macquarie University community on the global stage at the Paris Olympics,” says Boyle.
“Macquarie supports our exceptional student-athletes to pursue both their academic and athletic aspirations through wonderful initiatives such as our sports scholars program. Their ability to balance rigorous training regimes with academic pursuits embodies the essence of resilience and determination.
“The whole Macquarie community will be cheering them on in Paris with immense pride and admiration.”
