The legacy of Forbes Carlile MBE lies in more than his achievements as an Olympian, a legendary Australian swimming coach, mentor and pioneer of elite training regimes.

It lives on in the spirit and camaraderie that epitomised one of Australia’s finest Olympic Teams, that of the 1952 Games that Carlile competed in, and which AOC Chef de Mission Kitty Chiller believes will inspire Australia’s Team in Rio.

Such was the team spirit that existed among the Australian Team competing in Helsinki, it led to the creation of the famous Kapyla Club, named after the suburb where the Olympic Village was built in Helsinki.

For more than 60 years the members of the Kapyla Club have reunited each year to celebrate their inspiring Olympic legacy.

“In our journey toward Rio we’ve placed a lot of emphasis and focus on respecting the past and tradition,” Chiller said.

“We had Olympians from the 50s and the 60s and the 70s come and speak to our new generation of athletes and for us that was really important for our Australian team members.

“Our team is 65 per cent rookies and I felt that it was really important for our rookies to understand where the Australian team has grown from.

“To lose our two oldest Olympians (Carlile and Helen Joy Hardon) and that symbol of where we have come from, right in the week before Rio, it is a sobering thought and it is sad.

“Forbes especially, he was bright to the last … he was really that link between the past and the present and that symbolises what this team is about.

“I think, hope, he will give this team, especially the swimmers, extra inspiration and motivation to do their very best.”

It is a legacy Boomer Patty Mills said he was proud to be part of.

“I think it’s important to understand when you come in to a team like this that it’s not just the team that is competing this year, you’re a part of a greater team, of the past and the present,” Mills said.

“You want to be able to represent Australia and its land the right way, with a lot of pride and a lot of passion. 

“That’s the least you can do about leaving legacies, is do it the right way.”

David Taylor
olympics.com.au