An accidental palaeontologist whose discovery of a dinosaur bone led to the revival of the academic discipline Down Under and an Olympic hero have been recognized at the 2024 Australian of the Year awards.
Australian Olympic swimmer Emma McKeon, 29, was named Young Australian of the Year at the awards ceremony on Thursday evening.
Despite missing out on qualifying for the London 2012 Olympic Games at the age of 18, the Queenslander became Australia’s most successful Olympian of all time at the age of 27.
After a career break, McKeon returned to the sport and achieved six podium finishes at the 2014 Commonwealth Games.
Australian Olympic swimmer Emma McKeon (pictured), 29, has been recognized as Young Australian of the Year
Prime Minister of Australia Anthony Albanese and partner Jodie Haydon (pictured, centre) host a morning tea with Australian of the Year finalists at the Lodge in Canberra
At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she became the first female swimmer and the second woman in history to win seven medals in a single competition. She has also broken Commonwealth Games, Olympic and world records.
The 2024 Australian of the Year award, to be held at the National Arboretum in Canberra on Thursday evening, will be presented by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
McKeon’s win was the second announcement of the star-studded evening, which will be hosted by legendary ABC journalist Leigh Sales.
David Elliott, a fourth-generation farmer whose accidental discovery of Australia’s largest ever dinosaur bone during a routine sheep roundup in 1999 led to the revival of the country’s palaeontology field, has been named Australia’s Local Hero for 2024.
The 2024 Australian of the Year award, to be held at the National Arboretum in Canberra on Thursday evening, will be presented by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured)
Australia’s Local Hero of 2024 David Elliott OAM and his wife Judy arrive at the awards ceremony at the National Arboretum in Canberra
After Elliott’s discovery in the outback Queensland town of Winton attracted other palaeontologists to the region, he and his wife Judy founded the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History in 2002.
The institute attracts thousands of visitors every year to the city, which is now known as the dinosaur capital of the country.
The museum first operated on the couple’s property and conducted dinosaur digs, with Mr Elliott amassing an impressive collection of fossils.
The museum now houses the country’s most important collection of dinosaur artefacts and serves as a center for Australian paleontological research and discovery.
Mr Elliott (pictured), a fourth-generation farmer whose accidental discovery of Australia’s largest ever dinosaur bone during a routine sheep roundup in 1999 led to the revival of the country’s palaeontology field, has been named Australia’s Local Hero for 2024
David was recognized for his contributions to science in 2015 with an Order of Australia Medal (OAM).
More to come.
