"Ashamed to say I was an Olympian": How Nat Burton is empowering a new generation

The Rio Olympics were the worst experience of Nat Burton’s life. The devastating low prompted a journey that's inspired her to make sure the same thing never happens to anyone else.

Photo Credit: FIBA

They’re the words every athlete dreams of hearing.

“You have made the team.”

As Sandy Brondello delivered a version of that message to to the twelve women comprising the Opals Olympic team named for Paris, they all shared some form of the same feeling.

For the first timers, it was the moment a lifetime of work instantly paid off. For others, it was reinforcement they belonged amongst the world’s best basketballers. Selection is induction into a special sisterhood, and a lifetime entry into sport’s most exclusive club. It’s acknowledgement, endorsement, and affirmation.

Back in 2016, all of these things were true for Nat Burton. The then 27-year-old centre had been handpicked for her first Olympics, and it felt like each one of her wildest dreams had come true all at once. She’d made a name for herself by helping Australia win a bronze medal at the 2014 World Championships in Turkey, quickly becoming a key cog in what was then a post Lauren Jackson Opals outfit (which now seems very strange to write). Under Brendan Joyce, this iteration of the Opals was fast, fierce, and formidable. As they eyed the Rio Games, they once again had their eyes on the podium. But those Olympics quickly became the worst experience of Burton’s life.

For Burton, the opportunity to represent her country suddenly became a burden too heavy to carry. The chance to fight for a medal became another opportunity to let everyone down. Each possession a stage to show she simply wasn’t good enough. On the game’s biggest stage, it was as if she was suddenly drowning, and had forgotten how to swim.

It was an experience that changed the trajectory of Burton’s life. It led her on a journey of self-discovery, and a mission aimed at dispelling self doubt. It was a pilgrimage that took her all over the world, opening her eyes to truths she’d never understood. Ultimately, it enabled her to embark on a mission to make sure no-one would ever experience the same lows she did on a basketball court.

How exactly did what was supposed to be the best experience of her life quickly become her own personal hell, and how did she find her way out of it?