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Michelle Payne

5 Australian women who defied all odds to achieve greatness

By Claire Knight | Presented by Ride Like A Girl|

They believed they could, and they did it.

Sometimes all it takes to feel inspired and empowered is to hear the stories of those who came, saw and conquered before us.

If you're in need of some fierce female motivation, here are five of many Australian women with seriously impressive stories of defying all odds and achieving greatness.

Turia Pitt

Athlete, mother, boss, humanitarian and true survivor Turia Pitt is someone so inspiring, it's hard not to well up in tears from just reading her story.

In 2011, she was trapped in a grassfire while running a 100 kilometre "ultramarathon" through the Kimberley region in Western Australia. Pitt suffered shocking burns to 64 per cent of her body and had all fingers on her right hand and two fingers on her left hand amputated.

After a long and arduous two year recovery process, she went on to be one of Australia's most renowned motivational speakers, competed in the 2016 Ironman World Championship in Hawaii, raised over a million dollars for burns victims in developing countries, married her high school sweetheart and gave birth to their baby boy.

Now pregnant with her second child, Pitt is reportedly going to be played by Aussie actress Tammin Sursok in a freshly announced biopic with production commencing in Sydney next year.

Julia Gillard

Australia's first female Prime Minister paved the way for future women in politics and continues to champion education, environmental issues and women's empowerment?through her international social justice and human rights work.

During her time in politics, she faced an array of sexist backlash and disparaging comments from colleagues and media, and famously stood up against it.

Her 2012 speech in about misogyny became one of the most memorable moments in Australian Parliamentary history.

In 2017, Gillard was appointed a?Companion of the Order of Australia?(AC) "for eminent service to the Parliament of Australia, particularly as Prime Minister, through seminal contributions to economic and social development, particularly policy reform in the areas of education, disability care, workplace relations, health, foreign affairs and the environment, and as a role model to women."

Michelle J. Payne

Victorian jockey Michelle Payne smashed through the glass ceiling and brought Australia to a standstill when she became Australia's first female winner of the Melbourne Cup in 2015.

When 150 years of "tradition and history" dictated that Australia's most famous horse race was a man's race, Payne stood up to the naysayers to get her place in the saddle.

Determined to be the best on the day, regardless of gender, she rode the 100:1 odds "Prince of Penzance" to victory and galloped straight into the history books.

If all that weren't enough, who can forget Michelle's iconic quote: "I just want to say to everyone else get stuffed if they think women aren't strong enough, because we just beat the world."

Payne's remarkable story is now immortalised in the inspiring feature film Ride Like A Girl, directed by Rachel Griffiths and starring Teresa Palmer and Sam Neill.

Tracy Westerman

Tracy Westerman is one of most renowned experts in Aboriginal mental health, and an indigenous Australian icon.

Despite coming from a background of disadvantage and one in which she had to undertake most of her tertiary entrance subjects by Distance Education, the proud Nyamal woman from the Pilbara region of Western Australia successfully completed a Post Graduate Diploma in Psychology, a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology and Doctor of Philosophy.

She's since developed her own unique psychological testing tools, models, training and community intervention programs that have revolutionised indigenous mental health, cultural competency and suicide prevention in Australia, with her work being recognised locally and around the world.

Penny Wong

South Australian Labor Senator Penny Wong was instrumental in legalising same-sex marriage in Australia and is the first female openly-LGBTI+ Australian federal parliamentarian and the first Asian-born member of an Australian Cabinet.

A firm believer in fighting for what is right, Wong rose above the racism and homophobic attitudes she encountered throughout her life and career to continually stand up for equal rights for minorities.

"The experience of prejudice and racism has no doubt formed my desire to try to make things better," she told SBS.

Like her game-changing former colleague Julia Gillard, Wong's achievements will no doubt have a powerful influence over future generations of leaders.

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Ride Like A Girl is now available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital.

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