Sue Stanley

Sue Stanley has made an outstanding contribution to sport and disability advocacy, particularly in swimming, tennis and the Special Olympics. After recognising her son Clinton’s exceptional swimming ability, she helped him progress to representing Queensland and Australia. She became a passionate advocate for athletes with Down syndrome, challenging inequities in disability sport classifications and creating greater opportunities for swimmers with intellectual disabilities. Sue founded and chaired the Down Syndrome Down Under Swimming Organisation, led Australian teams to international championships in South Africa, Ireland, Taiwan and Portugal, and helped Australian athletes achieve world championship titles, gold medals and world records. 

Beyond swimming, Sue established Special Olympics tennis programs on the Sunshine Coast, recruiting coaches, volunteers and community support to enable athletes with disabilities to participate and compete. She helped develop programs at Nambour and Eumundi, organised teams for national competitions, and was instrumental in advocating for fair recognition of athletes with disabilities in Masters swimming competitions. 

In addition to her sporting leadership, Sue dedicated decades to fundraising, team management, coaching, event organisation and volunteer service, raising thousands of dollars to support athletes competing nationally and internationally. Her contributions have been recognised through awards including the Australian Sports Medal, Volunteer of the Year, and selection as a baton bearer in the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games Queen’s Baton Relay.