Driving salute to swimming legend

A street in Rothwell has been given a golden upgrade in tribute to Australian swimming legend Leisel Jones.

Leisel Drive, off Anzac Ave, has been renamed Leisel Jones Drive following a campaign by Triple M Radio to immortalise the Olympic star.

Moreton Bay City Councillors voted for the name change in May and a cavalcade of cars took Jones down the road bearing her name on Saturday.

Jones was a student at Southern Cross Catholic College, just 800m from the road bearing her name and trained at Redcliffe Leagues Swimming Club.

She won three Olympic, seven World Championship and 10 Commonwealth gold medals and finished her career with 42 medals from major championships.

Mayor Peter Flannery was on hand to “acknowledge Leisel Jones OAM, as one of Moreton Bay’s greatest talents and one of Australia’s most successful sportswomen”.

“Moreton Bay has a proud history of generating some of Australia’s best swimming talent like Jessicah Schipper, Bronte Barratt, Dane Bird-Smith, Brenden Hall and Lakeisha Patterson to name a few,” he said.

“As we look ahead to the Games here in 2032, it’s also important to reflect on our Olympic and Paralympic legacy and celebrate the luminaries who’ve made Australia such an incredible sporting nation.

“I’m definitely keen to recognise more local Olympic and Paralympic legends and encourage you to make suggestions online.

“The key thing we’re looking for when considering a place name is a strong local connection to that area or a story to tell about the namesake.

“Like the fact Leisel Jones went to school just up the road from here and has done Moreton Bay and Australia immensely proud on the international stage.”