{{Short description|Australian field hockey player (1955–2025)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=March 2018}} {{Use Australian English|date=March 2018}}
'''Kym Ireland''' (25 October 1955 – 9 December 2025) was an Australian field hockey player.
Ireland represented Australia in the Australia women's national field hockey team at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.<ref>[https://www.olympic.org/kym-ireland/ "Kym Ireland (AUS)"], olympic.org website, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref> She was the team's goalkeeper. It was the first time the Hockeyroos had represented Australia at the Olympic Games.<ref>[http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/saluting-olympic-legends-rockhampton-past/1422768/ "Saluting Olympic Legends"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421181416/https://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/saluting-olympic-legends-rockhampton-past/1422768/ |date=21 April 2019 }}, ''The Morning Bulletin'', 19 June 2012, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref> Placing fourth overall, the team did not win a medal. However, one of the highlights of Ireland's performance was stopping 11 shots from Beth Anders' 12 attempts at goal in Australia's victory over the United States.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/08/sports/field-hockey-medal-for-dutch-women.html "Field Hockey"], ''New York Times'', 8 August 1984, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref>
Ireland returned to her hometown of Rockhampton, Queensland, in 2013 after spending 15 years in Brisbane where she coached at schools and hockey clubs.<ref>[http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/gimme-that-good-hard-rocky-hockey/1756893/ "Gimme that good hard Rocky hockey, says former Olympian"], ''The Morning Bulletin'', 15 February 2013, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref>
After returning to Rockhampton, Ireland began coaching local hockey team the Park Avenue Brothers.<ref>[http://www.kickstartcq.com.au/article/local-hockey-club-welcomes-olympian-1707.html "Local Hockey Club Welcomes Olympian"], ''Kickstart CQ'', 14 February 2013, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref>
Not long after her return to Rockhampton, Ireland discovered that a Ukrainian artist living in the city had painted a life-sized portrait of her, along with 20other Olympians. The artist had painted the portraits in 2004 but had decided to start selling them. Ireland bought the painting of herself for $30.<ref>[http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/olympian-finds-out-double-rockhampton-kym-ireland/1979863/ "Olympian finds out she has a double in Rockhampton"], ''The Morning Bulletin'', 12 August 2013, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref> The painting had been previously displayed with the others at Rockhampton's historic customs house during the 2008 Summer Olympics.<ref>[http://blogs.abc.net.au/queensland/2008/08/olympians-on-di.html "Olympians on display"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140313094929/http://blogs.abc.net.au/queensland/2008/08/olympians-on-di.html |date=13 March 2014 }}, ''Breakfast'', ABC Capricornia, 15 August 2008, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref>
In 2014, Ireland said she was disappointed in the way that Kookaburra player Jamie Dwyer, also from Rockhampton, was told he would not be competing at the 2014 Commonwealth Games after being told in an email that he was axed from the team.<ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-24/dwyer-axed-from-kookaburras27-games-squad/5547236/ "Jamie Dwyer left out of Kookaburras' Commonwealth Games squad for Glasgow"], ''ABC News'', 24 June 2014, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref> Ireland said such a procedure was wrong and needed to be addressed.<ref>[http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/news/rocky-heros-axing-shocks-a-fellow-hockey-champion/2307710/ "Rocky hero's axing shocks a fellow hockey champion"], ''The Morning Bulletin'', 5 July 2014, retrieved 10 October 2016.</ref>
Ireland died from cancer on 9 December 2025, at the age of 70.<ref>[https://www.hockey.org.au/news/vale-kym-ireland-hockeyroo-283/ "Vale Kym Ireland – Hockeyroo #283"], hockey.org.au website.</ref><ref>[https://www.facebook.com/100083359790289/posts/ireland-kym-mareelate-of-rockhamptonpassed-away-peacefully-on-tuesday-9th-decemb/848639064591412/ Ireland, Kym Maree funeral notice]</ref>
== References == <!-- Inline citations added to your article will automatically display here. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:REFB for instructions on how to add citations. --> {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{sports links}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ireland, Kym}} Category:1955 births Category:2025 deaths Category:Australian women's field hockey players Category:Olympic field hockey players for Australia Category:Field hockey players at the 1984 Summer Olympics Category:Sportspeople from Rockhampton Category:20th-century Australian sportswomen Category:Deaths from cancer in Queensland