Winning an Olympic Gold medal is the ultimate achievement in sport. Most athletes can only dream of such an honour. Those who reach this pinnacle are blessed with a rare mix of natural ability, determination and the element of luck. Dawn Fraser is one of the most talented influential Australian women of her time.

Born on 4th December 1937, Dawn Fraser grew up in the city of Balmain, near Sydney Harbour. She lived beside water, rumbling of ships and cries of seagulls. The youngest of eight children, four girls and four boys, Dawn grew up in a very close-knit and loving family.

Her father, Ken, arrived in Sydney from Scotland in 1913 and worked as a shipwright on the harbour docks. A righteous man with a strong Scottish accent, Dawn's father married a local Balmain girl, Dawn's mother, Rose., In 1914, and...