Belinda Clark’s childhood of backyard cricket with her siblings saw her go on to become a trailblazer in the sport and later captain the Australian women’s team for 12 years.
Now, her contribution to the sport has been immortalised, with Clark receiving the honour of becoming the subject of the world’s first major female cricketer sculpture, with the bronze piece revealed at the SCG on Thursday.
Clark’s sculpture stands just metres from one of Steve Waugh, outside the entry of Gate A on Driver Avenue, where Clark said she once regularly used to eat lunch while working for Cricket NSW.
The sculpture was revealed just before play in the third Test between Australia and South Africa. Designed by artist Cathy Weiszmann, Australia’s first female governor-general Quentin Bryce took the honours of unveiling the piece. Clark told reporters she started working with Weiszmann a year ago and that it’s been a “journey” seeing the project coming to life.
Clark captained the Australian team for 12 years, playing 118 one-day internationals and 15 tests during her remarkable career. She continues to hold the women’s record for most runs in one-day international cricket and became the first woman to score a double century in a ODI. She retired in 2005.
Clark becomes just the fourth cricketer to receive a statue and the 15th member of the SCG sculptor project which is immortalising great athletes across different sports. There are also two other statues of women at the SCG, including sprinters Betty Cuthbert and Marlene Matthews. There are 73 statues of male cricketers across Australia.
Clark told media that “the sculpture encapsulates being able to have a go – to be courageous, to take on those challenges and break convention.”
And said it shows how people can doing anything they want, “if you put your mind to it.”
She later added that it can feel “weird” to have a life-size statue of yourself, but credited the skill and talent of the artist. She added that the pose they selected hopes to depict the idea of being “bold and courageous”, the need to “livee your life” and thirdly to recognise “this is just a point in time and it’s important to pass the baton on to the next generation.”
“I’m grateful for those who’ve come before me, and hopeful that go after will continue and inspire people along the way also.”
At the launch of the statue on Thursday, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said his government is “committed to breaking down barriers and driving greater female participation in sport” and highlighted a $1 billion commitment to community sports infrastructure as well as programs like Her Sport Her Way.
“But there’s nothing like seeing one of our best female athletes recognised right at the front door to the SCG to inspire the next generation of elite cricketers,” he said.
Image above: Belinda Clark pictured with the bronze statue. Credit: Cricket.com.au