Our School’s incredible history has many wonderful stories that our community are deeply connected to. This year as we celebrate our 125th Year Anniversary, we invite you each week to step back in time through some of the many stories that make up the life at St Catherine’s School.

An occasional award is given to a year 12 student who has made an outstanding contribution to the sporting life of St Catherine’s at an elite level. It was named in honour of Margaret Woodlock, who competed in the 1956 Olympics in shot put whilst a student at St Catherine’s.  She was Captain of the School in 1956, receiving awards for Sport, Music and Service to the School.  She was Victorian Shot Put Champion 1956-1962, Australian Champion 1957-1962 and was Gold Medallist at the World Master Games 2002.

When selected for the 1956 Olympics squad as an 18-year-old schoolgirl, The Age newspaper reported it in the 20 September 1956 edition:

“Victoria’s unexpected ‘find’ in the shotput, 18 year old Margaret Woodlock, wears her red and black Frankston athletic outfit under her St Catherine’s uniform when going to training……

 Margaret has never competed in a State championship and until a few weeks ago belonged to no athletic club. She then found she had to join to compete in State competitions run by the Victorian Amateur Athletic Association. As she lives at Seaford, she joined Frankston Club. 

This freckled, wavy haired youngster is school captain at St Catherine’s and captain of the baseball team. Because of this, she plays baseball on Tuesdays and Thursdays and trains for the shotput on Mondays and Wednesdays. As there is no dressing room available at Olympic Park, where she trains, she wears her athletic outfit under her St Catherine’s uniform.

Margaret’s main interest was javelin throwing. She practised the shot put only because she felt it would help her in the javelin.

Her interest in both these sports started six years before the 1956 Olympic Games, when St Catherine’s was one of the first girls’ schools to introduce javelin and discuss throwing into the sports program. Read more about Margaret here.