Mrs SALLY QUINNELL (Camden) (16:51): I wish to speak about a Camden born and raised hero, Steven Bradbury. I will be speaking to his recent commendation. However, I feel the need to clarify for those who know Steven's story thus far that his bravery is anything but a surprise. Steven Bradbury was born in Camden on 14 October 1973. From the age of three, he skated his heart out, with his dad by his side. In fact, members will be interested to note that Steven's dad was himself a former national speed skating champion. For those who are not aware of how Steven got to that fateful day in Salt Lake City, he overcame adversity beyond imagination. In 1994, at the World Cup, Steven suffered a terrible injury to his leg where he was essentially impaled by another skater's blade. He lost over four litres of blood in 60 seconds. Yet, despite that near-death experience, Steven's stitches were removed after only a couple of weeks, and he raced at the World Championship four months later and placed twelfth in the world.
In 2000, six years after his accident, Steven had another hurdle to overcome. One day during training he crashed out, fracturing his C4, C5 and C6 vertebrae. To put it in simple terms, he broke his neck—quite badly, in fact. They had to screw a halo brace into his head, potentially ending his career for good. He could have bled out on the ice or ended up in a wheelchair. Still, despite those adversities, he overcame all odds and went for gold at the Salt Lake 2002 Winter Olympics. Since that day he has been an Australian hero and a proud son of the Camden community. "Doing a Bradbury" has made it into the Australian vernacular, and he has even been honoured in the form of a postage stamp—an honour, I note, that not even most Premiers and Prime Ministers will receive.
In March last year, Steven continued his long history of bravery and courage by saving four young girls from two-metre waves. The girls were reported to have been dragged out by a sudden rip and were headed towards the impact zone, where the largest waves have the biggest breaks. When Steven and his son, Flyn, noticed this, Steven rushed straight into action and paddled out towards them, risking his own life to save others. Flyn flagged down other lifeguards in the area, who joined Steven and brought the remaining girls to shore. Reports state that one girl needed oxygen and another girl said that if Steven had not launched his massive effort, she would have died.
For that amazing feat of bravery, Steven was awarded a Commendation for Brave Conduct from His Excellency the Governor-General "for his actions during the rescue of four teenagers from rough seas in Caloundra, Queensland on 5 March 2022". No-one could ever doubt that Steven's bravery is beyond reproach, but that commendation confirms what we all knew: Steven is one of a kind. On behalf of the Camden community, I thank Steven for his bravery and for all that he does to champion Camden values.
