Australian netball icon Anne Henderson will be honoured with a bronze statue thanks to the Victorian Government’s Celebrating Female Sporting Icons initiative and the Statues for Equality project, a global movement working to balance gender and racial representation in public statues.
On International Women’s Day last year Netball Victoria launched a campaign advocating for greater recognition of female sporting icons in our community. In December it was announced that Sharelle McMahon would be immortalised in bronze outside John Cain Arena, with today’s announcement revealing Henderson as the second of two iconic netballers to be honoured in statue form.
One of our state’s most prominent netball identities, Henderson’s contribution spanned many roles and decades. She qualified as an All-Australian umpire in 1933, represented Victoria as a player in 1933 and 1934, coached the Victorian state team on various occasions between 1939 and 1958, and coached the Australian team on their inaugural tour of New Zealand in 1948.
Henderson was inducted as a Netball Victoria Life Member in 1939 and elevated posthumously into the Hall of Fame in 1998. The Royal Park State Netball Centre was re-named the Anne Henderson Stadium in 1981 and our State Netball Centre remains part of her enduring legacy, as does Metropolitan Region 4 which was christened the Henderson region in 1990 by the Victorian Netball State Council.
The statue will be produced by renowned sculpture artists Gillie and Marc and will stand outside the newly redeveloped State Netball Centre in Parkville. Home to Victorian netball for over 80 years, the Royal Park site’s $64.6 million redevelopment also includes a function space dedicated to Henderson.
“Anne Henderson was one of the pioneers of netball in Victoria, a true leader who dedicated her life to our game – it’s wonderful to know that her legacy will live on in this way and be shared with future generations of netballers,” said Netball Victoria Interim CEO Steve Gatt.
“Today’s announcement represents another step forward in addressing the imbalance evident in our state’s existing sporting statues, and recognising the role women play in Victoria’s proud sporting landscape.”
