- Australian of the Year had an exhausting run last weekend
- Took place on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria
Grace Tame burst into tears as she completed a 60km ultramarathon as the first woman to cross the line – and her time was so fast she took sixth place overall.
The 2021 Australian of the Year couldn’t contain her joy as she completed the tough race at the Great Ocean Road Running Festival southwest of Melbourne last weekend in an incredible time of just four hours and 43 minutes.
Tame later took to Instagram to share her incredibly intense experiences as she pushed her body and mind to the limit and opened up a four kilometer lead over the next best woman.
Tame couldn’t contain her emotions after finishing first among female runners and sixth overall at the Great Ocean Road Running Festival ultramarathon last weekend
The 2021 Australian of the Year hugged her father after finishing in an incredible time of four hours and 43 minutes
“It is said that nothing worth doing is easy. That wasn’t easy. But for the breathtaking scenery, the joy shared, and the new lessons that emerged from the pain, it was well worth it,” she wrote.
After giving her followers a rundown of the obstacles she faced – including ‘a brutal headwind and horizontal rain almost the entire way’, as well as a steep climb that lasted more than 5km and a crushing hill covered in ‘ rocky mud” – shared how she felt when she crossed the line.
‘I ended up in tears, sore all over, soaked and muddy. The roaring crowd won me over,” Tame said.
‘For the first time I broke the winner’s tape and fell to my knees. Then I saw Dad and jumped back up.
At one point, Tame opened up a four-kilometre lead to the next best female runner during the grueling test of body and mind
The Tasmanian activist said the torturous run was worth it ‘for the breathtaking scenery, the shared joy and new lessons forged in pain’
Tame has previously opened up about how running helps her cope with her autism symptoms
“Dad traveled with me from Tassie to be my support crew. 21 years ago he saw me win my first cross country race when I was 8 years old, and he was there with me on Sunday.
‘Running is a team sport. If it weren’t for Dad getting up at 5 a.m. to drop off water bottles at the aid stations, or without the camaraderie of fellow athletes, spectators and staff, there might have been a run, but there would have been no goal. .
‘We run, just as we live; being together.’
Tame has previously opened up about how running has helped her cope with her autism.
“Like many people with autism, I get overstimulated very easily, especially by noise,” she said in a short film she made with Aspect, Australia’s largest service provider for people with the condition.
‘Regulating is quite a job, because I have to manage both the symptoms of autism and the symptoms of complex post-traumatic stress.
“I have found that running is a fantastic, healthy way to regulate emotions and is also a means of spiritual and human connection.”