Richard Charlesworth

Richard “Ric” Charlesworth was born in Subiaco, Western Australia, and became an accomplished athlete in both hockey and cricket. He played 47 first-class matches for Western Australia between 1972 and 1979 and was part of three Sheffield Shield-winning squads, while establishing an international hockey career that would span 17 years. 

Charlesworth made his Olympic debut aged 20 at Munich 1972, where Australia finished fifth. Four years later he was vice-captain of the Australian team that reached the Montreal 1976 gold medal match. Australia was defeated 1-0 by New Zealand, earning Charlesworth an Olympic silver medal at a Games where no Australian athlete won gold. 

Selected to captain Australia at Moscow 1980, Charlesworth was denied a third consecutive Olympic appearance when the Australian hockey federation withdrew its teams amid the boycott. He returned as captain at Los Angeles 1984, leading Australia through an unbeaten preliminary round before losses in the semi-final and bronze medal match left the team fourth. 

Charlesworth’s fourth Olympic appearance came at Seoul 1988, where he carried the Australian flag during the Opening Ceremony. Australia again finished fourth after losing 3-2 to Great Britain in the semi-final and 2-1 to the Netherlands in the bronze medal match. Charlesworth retired after representing Australia 227 times and scoring 85 international goals. He also contested four World Cups, helping Australia win bronze in 1978 and 1982 before claiming the world title in 1986. 

After retiring as a player, Charlesworth became one of international hockey’s most successful coaches. He guided the Hockeyroos to Olympic gold at Atlanta 1996 and Sydney 2000, as well as World Cup titles in 1994 and 1998. He later coached the Australian men to the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, bronze at London 2012 and Commonwealth Games gold in 2010 and 2014. Charlesworth was elevated to Legend status in the Hockey Australia Hall of Fame in 2025.