Following yesterday’s Annual General Meeting, we’re writing to share some important news about the Sport Australia Hall of Fame’s leadership.
After 21 years at the helm, John Bertrand AO has retired as Chair of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame — a tenure that took SAHOF from a heritage organisation to a national platform, spanning the Scholarship & Mentoring Program, the National Sports Museum, and the Heroes & Legends broadcast reaching over a million Australians each year. He hands the reins to Steve Hooker OAM, Olympic gold medallist and a SAHOF Director since 2023.
Alongside this leadership change, we also farewell Perry Crosswhite AM, who retires as a General Member Director after joining our Selection Committee in 2017 and Board in 2018, capping a sporting and administrative career spanning more than five decades. SAHOF also welcomes two new Directors to the Board: Peter Montgomery AM, who takes over Perry Crosswhite’s seat as General Member Director — a four-time Olympian in water polo who has served the Olympic movement continuously since 1984, including 20 years on the AOC and six IOC bodies — and Petria Thomas OAM, joining as Athlete Member Director in the seat vacated by John Bertrand, one of Australia’s most decorated swimmers with eight Olympic medals, including individual gold in the 100m butterfly at Athens 2004.
Read on below for more from both John and Perry.
It has been my absolute privilege to have led the Sport Australia Hall of Fame since 2005. I took over as Chair from the great Neale Fraser, 19 Grand Slams across singles, doubles and mixed doubles, Davis Cup captain for 24 years. Big shoes to fill!
After 21 years as Chair, I am now handing over the reins to Steve Hooker OAM, Olympic and world champion, former Australian Olympic Committee Athletes Commission Chair and very successful entrepreneur. Steve, as deputy Chair, has already been adding enormous value to the Hall. His enthusiasm, energy and can-do attitude is second to none. Steve is going to do great!
Over my time, I have seen the development of pretty much every aspect of the Hall’s footprint including thought leadership through the Chair Round Table, Integrity of Sport and Women in Sport forums and our highly successful Scholarship and Mentoring program in which over 230 young athletes have benefitted from our members knowledge and wisdom. As mentors, who else can talk about facing their fears on the world stage but the members of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame?
As Chair of the Hall of Fame, the most rewarding experience for me has been meeting so many outstanding Australians, both on and off the sporting field. Their values, their wisdom, their enthusiasm for life. Good Australians, great Australians.
If there is one legacy I would like to leave, it is the following…for the Sport Australia Hall Fame to inspire the next generation of young Australians to achieve their potential both in sport and as the great Ron Barassi would say, ‘and in life.’! For our young they are the future of this country. You back them every time.
Thank you to all our Board members who served with me over the last 21 years, 48 in all!, sourced from sport, business and politics, so much input and knowledge, so much commitment. They say it takes a village to raise a child….how true that is!
To our SAHOF members, the greatest of the great of Australian sport. ‘One can go no higher!’ Their values are who they are. I love that. I am continually in awe of the incredible feats our members achieved both in our country and on the world stage. And how humble they are!
To our superb management team who do such amazing work and to our partners and sponsors who have supported us through thick and thin.
To our Patrons, Hon John Howard, Hon Bob Hawke (dec) and Dawn Fraser AC MBE. To bring these national iconic leaders together just showed the power of sport.
And my darling wife Rasa. She is the best.
Thank you all. It has been my pleasure.
Go Australia!
John Bertrand AO
“John Bertrand has delivered excellence as an athlete in sailing, as Chair of Swimming Australia, and as the instrumental leader of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. He has ensured that the greatness of Australian sport, past, present and future, is recognised, nurtured and celebrated, through the awards, scholarship programs, and recognition the Hall of Fame delivers. Such selflessness has ensured that his legacy will live long beyond his time at the helm.”
John Eales AM – Sport Australia Hall of Fame Legend
As John steps into a well-earned retirement, we’re delighted to welcome Steve Hooker OAM, as SAHOF’s incoming Chair.
Steve was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2017 – the first pole vaulter ever inducted. He mentored young athletes through our Scholarship & Mentoring Program before joining the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board in 2023 – where his enthusiasm, energy and can-do attitude have already added enormous value to SAHOF.
Steve’s career included Olympic gold at Beijing 2008 and, by 2010, simultaneous Olympic, World Championship, World Indoor and Continental Cup titles – form that saw him awarded SAHOF’s Don Award twice, in 2008 and 2009. Since retiring from athletics in 2014, Steve has also served five years on the Australian Olympic Committee Board, led Resimax Group as CEO for five years, and now runs his own property development business, iHi Projects.
“It’s a great honour to take on the role of Chair of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame. It has been a privilege to serve on the Board for the past three years and to see firsthand the important role the Hall of Fame plays in celebrating Australia’s greatest sporting achievements, stories and people. It’s no small thing taking the helm after 21 years of leadership by John Bertrand. He’s been a powerhouse for the Sport Australia Hall of Fame and has set a benchmark that myself and the board will strive to emulate. I’m excited to work with our Members, Board, team and partners to build on the organisation’s proud history and help shape its next chapter” Steve Hooker OAM
There’s so much more to Steve’s story – we’ll share more on Steve and his plans for SAHOF soon.
Alongside these changes, we also farewell Perry Crosswhite AM, who retires as a General Member Director after joining the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Selection Committee in 2017, and the Board of Directors in 2018.
Perry’s connection to Australian sport spans more than five decades. Brought to Australia to play basketball by fellow SAHOF Member Lindsay Gaze OAM, he represented Australia at three Olympic Games – as captain at Montreal 1976 and Moscow 1980. He went on to a pioneering career in sports administration – as Victoria’s first professional Recreation/Sport Officer, the first Executive Director of the Australian Olympic Committee, and the founding CEO of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association for 16 years.
Perry was named Australian Sports Administrator of the Year in 1998, awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2000, made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2007, and awarded ACGA Life Membership in 2018.
“It has been an honor, and an absolute pleasure to have served on the Board for the past eight years. During this time SAHOF has expanded into a number of new and important areas helping Australian athletes through mentoring and other programs and projects. This was in addition to the organisation appropriately undertaking its core responsibility of recognising excellence by Australian sportspeople. I wish the SAHOF Board Directors and staff every success in guiding the organisation in the future. I have every confidence they will maintain past performance and increase SAHOF’s success in the future” Perry Crosswhite AM
Thank you, Perry for your years of service and wisdom on the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Board.
Taking over Perry’s seat on the Board is fellow SAHOF Member Peter Montgomery AM, who will be joined on the Board by fellow SAHOF Member Petria Thomas OAM.
Peter brings his own remarkable sporting pedigree to the role. A four-time Olympian in water polo, he represented Australia 441 times and captained the team on 167 occasions. Since retiring from competition in 1984, Peter has served the Australian and international Olympic movement continuously – 20 years on the Australian Olympic Committee, Deputy Chef de Mission for Australia at four successive Olympics, inaugural President of the World Olympians Association, and AOC Vice-President since 2001. He has also served on six International Olympic Committee bodies, and has remained involved with Australian Water Polo continuously since 1982.
Petria also joins the Board with an outstanding sporting pedigree of her own. One of Australia’s finest butterfly swimmers, she represented Australia across three Olympic Games, retiring in 2004 with eight Olympic medals (three gold, four silver, one bronze). Her Athens 2004 campaign was the highlight of her career, delivering her first individual Olympic gold in the 100m butterfly, along with relay gold in the 4x100m freestyle and 4x100m medley – a performance that earned her the 2004 Don Award and the honour of Flag Bearer at the Athens Closing Ceremony.
Across her career, Petria amassed 16 Long and Short Course World Championship medals, seven Pan Pacific Championship medals and 12 Commonwealth Games medals, becoming the first female swimmer to win the same event (100m butterfly) at three consecutive Commonwealth Games.
Thank you all for being part of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame community. We look forward to the next chapter under Steve’s leadership.
The Sport Australia Hall of Fame
