REVEALED: The shock reason why ‘the greatest benefactor since Santa Claus’ Gina Rinehart has withdrawn funding for Swimming Australia

Australia’s richest woman, Gina Rinehart, has left Swimming Australia, leaving preparations for the Paris Olympics in tatters and millions in sponsorship money lost to the sport.

Swimming Australia is under siege, following claims that female athletes have been subjected to sexual innuendo, groping, body shaming and mental and physical abuse.

That resulted in the findings of a six-month investigation being made public, which former Olympic swimmer Giaan Rooney called “shocking.”

Now the sport is in shambles after the head of mining giant Hancock Prospecting walked out, leaving a major funding gap.

Rinehart had invested more than $60 million in Olympic and Paralympic sports, including 92 swimmers, but stopped two years ago.

Chairman of Hancock Prospecting Gina Rinehart in conversation with swimmers Cate Campbell, Bronte Campbell and Kyle Chalmers at the 2018 Australian Swimming Trials

Gold medalist Kaylee McKeown, Chelsea Hodges, Emma McKeon and Cate Campbell pose at the Tokyo Olympics

It can now be revealed that the rift between Rinehart and Swimming Australia stems from a lack of communication and transparency over athlete payments.

News Corp has reported that Rinehart discovered a swimmer had not received his money at an event in Noosa where parents could cheer on their children competing in the Tokyo Olympics.

“SA was made aware that a swimmer had not submitted their invoice and therefore had not been paid by the end of July 2021,” Swimming Australia said in a response to the claim.

After receiving this information, the swimmer, who was told by SA that he did not know how to download the invoice form, was paid in August 2021.”

However, Rinehart then discovered that not one, but six athletes received their funding late.

Rinehart was reportedly further upset over the cancellation of two gala awards shows for which she tipped $400,000, after which Swimming Australia canceled the 2020 and 2021 events.

With the Patron’s Awards scrapped, Rinehart would fund smaller awards nights to recognize swimmers nominated by then-CEO Alex Baumann.

The final blow came when Rinehart asked for a representative from her company Hancock Prospecting to be included on the Swimming Australia board.

That request was partially granted, with a member allowed to participate in the board meetings, but not having a vote or voting rights.

However, that member was repeatedly asked to leave the room due to ‘conflicts’.

‘A voiceless observer, hardly involved in the administration. Especially when we learned that on most cases our observer was asked to leave the room due to ‘conflicts,'” Rinehart told News Corp.

“I suspect that if a swimmer is allowed to become a director or pod parent, he will suffer the same fate… excluded from a large portion of the actual board meetings.”

‘I don’t think it is an unusual or unfair expectation that sports sponsors can be assured that their money is going to the athletes and, where appropriate, for agreed purposes. We don’t have such problems with the other Olympic sports we sponsor.’

Rinehart with then Swimming Australia president John Bertrand at the 2016 Australian Swimming Championships

Indigenous netballer Donnell Wallam (right) refused to have the Hancock Prospecting logo on her jersey

Swimming Queensland CEO Kevin Hasemann said he was shocked Swimming Australia had lost “the biggest benefactor I’ve seen since Santa Claus”.

“Ms. Rinehart’s generosity toward our sport is astounding. She has been sponsoring swimming for 35 years and has tipped more than $40 million since 2012 through the Hancock Prospecting Swimmer Support Scheme, the lifeblood of performance swimming in Australia. A further $40 million has been earmarked for the program in the run-up to the 2032 Home Olympic Games.

“The Australian triumph in Tokyo and ascension to world number one at the recent World Championships simply could not have happened without Ms Rinehart. And without her, the prospect of Australian swimmers repeating their astonishing Tokyo record in Brisbane in 2032 would be torpedoed, and Australia’s high medal prospects would be a pipe dream.

‘As current trustees of the HPSSS, Swimming Queensland enjoys a smooth, professional relationship with Ms Rinehart and her team’

Rinehart also recently withdrew her funding from Netball Australia after Indigenous netballer Donnell Wallam refused to have the Hancock Prospecting logo on her jersey with the support of her teammates.