The AOC has congratulated Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi after she was awarded the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) Coaches Lifetime Achievement Award overnight.
The award recognises outstanding support and mentoring of Olympic athletes.
Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi is the coach and mother of Australia’s Tokyo 2020 Canoe slalom C-1 gold medallist Jess Fox.
AOC President Ian Chesterman says the award recognises 25 years of coaching excellence.
“Coaches of Myriam’s quality are the very backbone of high performance at the Olympic level. She’s a two-time Olympian (Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996) in her own right, but her subsequent career in coaching has been extraordinary. Her athletes have won 12 world titles and four Olympic medals.
“Her dedication has put the sport of canoe/kayak front and centre and she is a wonderful role model for female coaches across all sports. Her role is seeking gender equality for women in canoe slalom is also something to be admired. How apt that her daughter Jess took the gold in that inaugural event at the Tokyo Games. It was a very proud moment for all Australians.
“We know that the figures for female coaches across Olympic sports while rising, remain too low.
“Myriam’s achievements serve as an inspiration. I note the IOC has launched a programme Women in Sport High Performance Pathway (WISH) to lift the number of female coaches and that is really welcomed,” Mr Chesterman concluded.
