Tribute to Marilyn Mills


19th October 2016

Mr GREG PIPER ( Lake Macquarie ) ( 13:22 :29 ): Today I pay tribute to an extraordinary Lake Macquarie woman who has not only conquered her disability but also the sporting world. Marilyn Mills from Morisset was born with a genetic eye disease. As her sight deteriorated in early life, she turned to sports to find a physical outlet in a safe environment. She began with blind cricket and ended up playing for Australia in 1986. She then competed in the Far East and South Pacific Games for the Disabled [FESPIC] in Indonesia. She won medals in javelin, high jump, shot put and discus in the B1 category for the totally blind.

Marilyn found her true passion in goalball, which was developed exclusively for the sight impaired. She became a member of the Australian goalball team, which won gold medals at the 1990 USED National Championship and the 1994 FESPIC Games in Beijing. Marilyn served for a time as president of Blind Sports NSW, and represented Australia at four Paralympic Games and two World Cups. Her achievements were recognised recently when she was inducted into the Goalball Australia Hall of Fame. She is only the sixth inductee. Lake Macquarie is very proud of Marilyn's achievements, and very grateful for the inspiration she has provided to many young people with sight impairments.


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