Monique Suraci

Biography

Monique Suraci's journey to the Paris 2024 Olympics is a tale of resilience and determination. Hailing from Canberra, this Queanbeyan native began boxing at just six years old, motivated by her father's desire for her and her sisters to learn self-defence. By the time she was ten, she was already stepping into the ring for her first competitions, with dreams of Olympic glory taking shape early on.

Her path to the Olympics wasn't without obstacles. Suraci's bid for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was thwarted by a combination of injuries and the global Covid-19 pandemic. Instead of being deterred, these setbacks fueled her drive. As her coach Garry Hamilton put it, “Monique works like she is not a naturally gifted athlete, which is a dangerous combination.” This tenacity paid off in 2023 when Monique secured her spot in the Paris Games by triumphing in the 50kg final at the Pacific Games in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

Suraci's career highlights include winning gold at the Youth Oceania Championships in 2018 and reaching the last 16 at the World Youth Championships in Budapest the same year. Her hard work and dedication were evident in 2023 when she won 13 out of 16 bouts, earning her recognition among the world's top fighters in her weight category.

Now with Olympic qualification under her belt, Monique is laser-focused on the 2024 Games, aiming for nothing less than gold. “I’m still wrapping my head around it,” she says. “It hasn’t fully sunk in yet, but I’m not satisfied by qualifying; I want to win gold at the Olympics in Paris.” Her journey illustrates that setbacks are merely setups for comebacks, and she’s more motivated than ever to achieve her lifelong dream.