Australian athlete and sporting icon, Catherine Freeman, said she felt a bit regret about her gold medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
She took on a huge amount of pressure before the event, and she won the gold medal in the women’s 400m race.
Although Freeman was able to set a new Australian record with a time of 49.11 seconds, she was disappointed with how she finished the race, as it was well short of her best.
She was hoping to run against French rival and two-time Olympic gold medalist, Marie-Josee Perec.
However, Perec left Australia before the event after an alleged incident with a man.
During a business luncheon held by Melbourne United on Friday, Freeman said that she became used to being put under a lot of pressure, and it motivated her to improve herself.
However, despite her achievements as an athlete, she didn’t feel that she fulfilled her potential.
She said that finding freedom in life is very important, and that she failed to run fast enough.
She felt that she let herself down by not being able to take advantage of the opportunities that Marie-Josee Perec would have given her during her peak.
She was disappointed that she didn’t get to face off against her rival.
During a warm-up session prior to the event, Freeman learned that Perec wouldn’t be participating in Sydney.
When she learned about Perec’s absence, Freeman said that it was a bit of a blow, but she quickly put it behind her and focused on the race.