Susan O'Neill, (born 2 August 1973) is an Australian former competitive swimmer from Brisbane, Queensland, nicknamed "Madame Butterfly".
She achieved eight Olympic Games medals during her swimming career.
Susan (Susie) O'Neill was born on 2 August 1973 in Mackay, Queensland, to Trish and John O'Neill.
She has two siblings, a brother and a sister.
Her family moved to Brisbane and she was educated at Lourdes Hill College (LHC) in Hawthorne.
Whilst at LHC, O'Neill excelled in sport, setting school records in 50 m and 100 m butterfly, freestyle, and backstroke.
1986
She was also LHC cross country champion and set records for the 13 years 800 m in 1986 and for the 15 years 400 m in 1988 for athletics.
1990
At her international debut at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, she won two medals (gold and silver), and continued to add to her medals cache at every international competition until her final Olympics.
1994
She trained under Bernie Wakefield until 1994, then Scott Volkers at the Commercial Swimming Club in Brisbane.
O'Neill is an ambassador for the Fred Hollows Foundation.
1996
O'Neill won the 200m butterfly at the 1996 Summer Olympics and the 200m freestyle at the 2000 Summer Olympics.
She has won 35 Australian titles, 8 Olympic medals including 2 gold, and 24 gold medals in major international competitions.
Only Emma McKeon, Ian Thorpe and Leisel Jones have won more Olympic medals for Australia.
1998
O'Neill married Cliff Fairley, who works as an ophthalmologist, in 1998.
They have two children.
O'Neill and her husband, Cliff Fairley, help generously to raise awareness for the Fred Hollows Foundation, and are one of its most distinguished ambassadors.
The Fred Hollows Foundation is an international nonprofit organisation that educates surgeons on how to cure avoidable blindness within underserved communities and countries.
2000
In front of a home crowd at the 2000 Olympic Games Trials she broke the 19-year standing world record of another "Madame Butterfly", Mary T. Meagher, in the 200m butterfly, but was beaten in an upset at the 2000 Olympic Games by American Misty Hyman.
She was the Oceania athletes' representative on the International Olympic Committee from 2000 to 2005.
When she resigned her membership she was replaced by Barbara Kendall.
2006
She provided commentary at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
2007
On 10 March 2007 during the 12th FINA World Championship, O'Neill was honoured by the dedication of the temporary swimming pool in the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne named after her for the duration of the competition.
O'Neill is a co-host on Nova 106.9's breakfast radio show Ash, Luttsy & Susie.
2011
All these records still stood as of 2011.
2018
On 14 February 2018, O'Neill released a single entitled "My Heart Goes Boom".
2019
In May 2019, O'Neill was announced as Australia's joint Deputy Chef de Mission for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, with fellow Olympians, Evelyn Halls and Kim Brennan.
