I’ve never had a more loyal friend.
I’ve never had a more loyal friend.
I often turned to him for guidance and he was always there offering his support.
Harry guided me in my thinking in many of the initiatives the AOC has taken over the years.Late last year we decided to recognise our indigenous heritage and change the AOC constitution, I turned to Harry for the words.
Harry helped me with major speeches at Team dinners and the Team Reception. His words were always so eloquent and inspirational. He was without peer.
We need to celebrate his amazing life, he crammed so much into his 89 years.
He was a tough bugger, a boxing champion in his early days, and certainly not frightened to voice an opinion.
In 2008 he boarded a plane to the Beijing Olympics with an oxygen tank to help him breathe. Others would have stopped at home and watched the Games on the lounge but not Harry. He covered the Games like any other journalist, up and down the stairs at the different venues, he didn’t flinch. And by then he was in his 80s.
I had the honour of speaking at his 80th birthday. The room was packed with his family and friends which included athletes, politicians, business leaders and others he had touched during his incredible journey as a journalist, editor, author and Olympic historian.
To those assembled I said “very few people go through life without making an enemy or two. Harry comes from one of the toughest businesses of all, the media. Yet everywhere you go it is hard to find anyone who has an unkind word to say about Harry. Finding someone who dislikes Harry is virtually impossible. This speaks volumes for the man. Harry has earned the respect of so many people throughout Australia and many more overseas. And not just in the media. Harry is held high on a pedestal by Olympic athletes... young and old. He is their friend, he is admired and trusted and treated like a member of the family”.
To us, Harry was a treasure, his life was a gold medal performance.
John Coates
President – Australian Olympic Committee
