Miscellaneous
A self-confessed adrenaline addict with the injuries to prove it – Caroline Buchanan is held together by bolts, wires, plates … you name it. For a decade this eight-time World Champion was at the top, but is now in unfamiliar territory - as the underdog. In the fifth and latest episode of On Side, Buchanan candidly talks about building not only her brand but her sport, her triumphs, struggles, THAT accident, and why now is the best time to be a female in action sport. We also re-live one of the greatest moments in Australian sport – John Aloisi’s penalty goal against Uruguay which cemented Australia’s spot in the 2006 World Cup in Germany, and chat to Paralympian Chad Perris, a bronze medallist in the 100m event at the Rio Olympics, about his career so far and his other “side gig” – sports commentating. Known for her tenacity and down-to-earth attitude, Buchanan is not only an incredible athlete (in three cycling disciplines), she’s a successful business woman, social media influencer and mentor. “A really big goal of mine, initially, was to make the sport known, so help get it on mainstream TV, so when it was footy on a Monday after they’ve had their weekend games I was paying a media liaison to help package my world cup win and BMX was packaged at the same time,” she says. “A lot of money that I invested back in to not only building the sport, building my own brand, it was 5-7 years of really putting everything back in to make this momentum happen, to be able to be this full-time athlete.” Coming back from an off-road accident that nearly killed her, Buchanan admits she has “seen both sides of being an elite athlete in Australia”. Aloisi’s famous penalty goal was voted by the Sport Australia Hall of Fame committee as one of the three greatest sporting moments in Australian history. He says he is asked about it almost daily when in Australia. “[People] remember where they were, what they were doing, whether they were at the game, or in a pub or at home, and I’ve heard some funny stories, it’s a special moment that I was lucky to be a part of,” Aloisi says. With only 5-8% vision, World championship silver medallist Perris says he’s constantly proving himself against the doubters. “I used to play Aussie Rules footy, and as a junior I went in there and I wore sunnies and a hat when I played and you’d always get people questioning why is this guy [playing], how can this guy play this when he can’t see, I’ve dealt with it all my life,” Perris says. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.