She won eight Olympic medals but Queensland swimming legend Susie O’Neill is feeling “berry” chuffed after a delicious new variety of strawberry was named after her.
Olympic swimming champion and Nova 106.9 breakfast host Susie O’Neill swims a lap of the pool balancing a glass of beer on her head.
The “Susie” is hitting shop shelves this strawberry season after being developed by scientists from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.
It’s one of three new varieties named after national identities by berry boffins from the Australian Strawberry Breeding Program based at Nambour.
Program head Jodi Neal said the Susie was the latest strawberry variety developed especially for subtropical Queensland growers, taking seven years to breed and trial.
“Susie’s a real workhorse, like the athlete herself,” Dr Neal said.
“She’s a lovely large fruit which is very productive for growers but also tastes delicious and has a good shelf life.”
Susie O’Neill is feeling “berry” chuffed after a delicious new variety of strawberry was named after her. Picture: Richard Walker
Nicknamed “Madame Butterfly” for her swimming exploits, O’Neill won eight medals, including two golds, at three Olympic Games but said having a strawberry named after her was a “huge honour”.
“Back in the day when I was a swimmer, I had some flowers named after me but to have a Susie strawberry is a bit cool,” she said.
“My grandma and mum used to grow strawberries and, like everyone, I love them.”
Mandy Schultz, who runs the LuvaBerry strawberry farm at Wamuran west of Caboolture, said she had just picked the early berries from her first crop of Susies and reckoned they would be a big hit with the public.
“We’ve just done our second pick and pulled off four big trays, and they’re beautiful,” she said.
“The Susie spent many years in trials where they put the best of strawberry properties together, and she’s proving to be a real champion.”
Dr Neal and her colleagues have also recently developed strawberries named after Australian classical pianist Tamara-Anna Cislowska and Brisbane-based winter Olympian Tahli Gill.