Phillip's Story
Phil Coles played an important role in Australia's Olympic history, first as an athlete and later as an administrator.
Coles competed in sprint kayaking at the 1960 Rome, 1964 Tokyo and 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. His best result was ninth in the K4 1000m at both Rome and Tokyo. He was also the team captain at two Games and went on to beccome the canoe/kayak section manager at the Munich 1972 Games and Chef de Mission at the Moscow 1980 Games.
Coles was a member of the International Olympic Committee from 1982 to 2011 and became an honorary member from 2012.
He was a member of the Australian Olympic Committee executive board from 1973 to 2011. During this time, he was the Secretary General from 1985 to 1993 and then Director of International Relations from 1993 to 1999.
Coles was the Secretary General of the International Triathlon Union from 1994 to 1999 and was instrumental in getting the sport included in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games. He was Vice President and Director of the Sydney Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) from 1993 to 1999. Coles said that his role in helping Sydney get the 2000 Olympic Games was the highlight of his Olympic career.
Coles has held many other Australian and international sports administration roles across Surf Lifesaving, Luge, Taekwondo and the NSW Institute of Sport.
