Full Circle by John Maclean with Lynne Cossar
Foreword by Steve Waugh
It is how we handle adversity that says much about the character and make-up of a person. In John Maclean I see a man who not only thrives on a challenge, but excels when the odds seem insurmountable. He is the guy you would want to be standing next to in the trenches doing battle; he is the player who you, the captain, rely on to kick the sideline conversion to win the grand final; the mentor that you want for your kids; the guy who makes a mockery of the ‘dis’ in disability.
After sustaining devastating injuries when struck by an eight-tonne truck as a promising twenty-two-year-old football player, John’s life was abruptly turned upside down. It is impossible to comprehend one’s mindset after such a traumatic event but here we are, some twenty years later, and John’s achievements are simply astonishing.
He is driven, motivated and determined to continually meet, accept and conquer challenge after challenge, very often the first person to do so.
I was fortunate that our paths crossed when, during my time as Australian of the Year (2004), I interviewed John for a high school teaching resource called Chase your Dreams. I was looking for role models to inspire the youth of Australia and believed John’s story would motivate kids to make the most of what they had and to not waste their talents and opportunities. I was immediately impressed with John’s incredible self belief and confidence that he could achieve anything he set his mind to, and also the fact that he was continually willing to put himself out of his comfort zone. To me this is how we fulfil our potential, and John’s ability over the years to plot the seemingly impossible, then conquer it, provides us all with a stunning example that we are only limited by our imagination.
John Maclean is a winner, not just because of his achievements, but also because of the way in which he conducts himself and leads others. He has overcome family and personal tragedy, established his own charitable foundation, competed and excelled against able-bodied competitors, broken records, continually reinvented himself across various sports disciplines and, despite all of this, he remains a humble down-to-earth guy who always gives 100% and refuses to give in.
I, like many other Aussies, consider John to be a man of great integrity, and a role model we should all try to emulate.
All the best for the future, mate, and may you continue to challenge yourself and never be satisfied with the ordinary.
Steve Waugh AO
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