Ariarne Titmus has announced that Australian athletes will be banned from consuming alcohol on their Flight home from the Olympic Games in Paris – or at least it wasn’t provided. Titmus was among the vast majority of Australia’s Olympic team that arrived home in Sydney on a chartered flight on Wednesday morning and received a hero’s welcome.
And on Nova 100’s radio show “Jase & Lauren” on Friday morning, the Lifeguard revealed what the flight back to Australia was like. When asked if there was a party atmosphere on the plane afterwards, Australia’s most successful Olympic campaign everTitmus said the opposite was true.
The gold medalist said the majority of athletes preferred to sleep rather than party and they couldn’t have an alcoholic drink even if they wanted to. “It was dry,” she said, referring to whether alcohol was available. “And then everyone was so tired, I’m not kidding. Some hadn’t even eaten dinner and were exhausted when we left and slept the whole way. Most slept for 12 hours.”
Presenter Lauren Phillips asked: “Couldn’t you get champagne on that flight after winning two gold medals?” Titmus then revealed that none was available. “When we got on the plane, there was orange and apple juice,” she said.
Titmus revealed that she even tried to get a drink during the four-hour layover at Perth Airport before flying on to Sydney, but even then she had no luck, despite the athletes having the Qantas lounge to themselves.
“We got to Perth and they said, ‘We’ve cordoned off the whole lounge for you guys to have your layover there for four hours and relax,'” she said. “We got there and it was great. We were on arrival and we got a bunch of chocolates… the whole place was set up. Welcome home. We thought, oh, let’s get some champagne or something. And we went over and the bar was closed and they were doing hot chocolates.”
Ariarne Titmus reveals something about the “hierarchy” of the flight home from the Olympic Games
The swimming superstar also revealed the “hierarchy” of the plane: gold medal winners sit right at the front in business class. Titmus won two gold medals in Paris and was allowed the luxury of sitting right at the front.
However, some potentially embarrassing scenes occurred when the gold medalists had to walk along the back of the plane to disembark. Since athletes exited the plane through the rear exit, the gold medalists had to walk past everyone else so they could be paraded in front of the adoring crowd first.
But Titmus said there was no embarrassment at all, and the other athletes gave the gold medallists a big round of applause as they walked past. “After we landed, one of the Qantas media ladies came to the first three rows and said, ‘So when we land, you have to unload your bags and then go to the back,'” she said. “It’s actually very cool because as we walked down the aisle of the plane, everyone was cheering.”
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Arisa Trew gave up the chance to sit in business class
On Wednesday morning, the 14-year-old skateboard star Arisa Trew announced that she had actually given up her seat at the front of the plane in business class. After winning gold in Paris, Trew was entitled to the good seats at the front, but declined so she could stay with her closest friends on the team.
“I could have sat in business class with all the medalists, but instead I chose economy with my two best friends Chloe and Ruby,” she said. “I’m pretty sure someone else got it (her business class seat) because my friends and I were walking around the plane and we went up there and it was full. So I definitely think someone else sat there, but I don’t mind.”
