Grace Tame has revealed a surprising new step in her career after she parted ways with the foundation that bears her name.
Tasmanian-born Tame, who was awarded Australian of the Year in 2021 for her advocacy work on behalf of victims of sexual assault, revealed on Thursday she is now a brand ambassador for sportswear giant Nike.
The 30-year-old has long promoted the benefits of running. She has competed in numerous events – including winning the 60km Victorian Great Ocean Road Ultramarathon in 2024.
Tame took to social media on Thursday to announce the new partnership.
‘I couldn’t be more excited to announce that I am officially an ambassador for Nike. This has been a long time in the making.’
She thanked her manager, Lauren Miller, and said the deal ‘wouldn’t have been possible without her’ along with her friends, family, and cousin Eloise Nairn-Smith, who founded the website Ritual Runners and who Tame called her ‘coach and hero’.
‘After initially signing with Nike three years ago, I had to walk away,’ Tame said.
She explained that the pressures of the ‘re-traumatising turmoil of 2021’ – a reference to her highly publicised time as Australian of the Year – had forced her to put her running ambitions on hold.
Grace Tame (right with Australian actor Kath Ebbs) has announced she is a brand ambassador for sportswear giant Nike
The 30-year-old won the 2024 Victorian Great Ocean Road Ultramarathon (pictured)
‘Critics became louder. Deadlines loomed. Years of anorexia and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder caught up with me. My bones broke. Something had to give. It was devastating.’
‘But I fought back. As some of you may already know, running is a core part of who I am. It’s more than a sport, it’s a philosophy. No matter where, or what I’m going through, my spirit levels when I’m on foot in the wild.
Tame said running was her favourite avenue of ‘escape, meditation, healing and learning’ and that is also helped her connect with nature, herself and the community and was beneficial to her advocacy work.
‘Often when strangers approach me, I anticipate receiving a disclosure of some kind (which is a gift). I’ve been surprised by how many people just want to share their connection with running, and that watching and reading about mine has helped them forge their own pathway forward.
‘Besides the obvious goal of safeguarding children, I’ve always hoped to help redefine what it means to be a survivor; to demonstrate that we’re not one-dimensional. Trauma is not a black mark. Everyone is entitled to dream. To run free.’
In November last year, Tame revealed she was running 100km a week and had her sights set on gaining a spot in the Australian Olympic team for 2028 in LA or 2032 in Brisbane.
Her last day as CEO of the Grace Tame Foundation was Wednesday.
Tame won the Great Ocean Road 60km race, but the 24km marathon was won by former Young Australian of the Year, Meriem Daoui (left) a nurse who has used her races to highlight social issues such as the need for childhood cancer research and help for Syrian refugees
Tame said the partnership with Nike was years in the making and thanked her manager, friends and family
The foundation released a statement last year saying Tame would be ‘transitioning to an impact and advocacy focused role’ after questions were raised about how the the organisation used donated funds.
There were no claims funds were used improperly, though many donors were dissatisfied they were not told how their money was being spent.
The foundation says it works ‘with political and societal leaders, and helps fund peak bodies to advocate for and drive meaningful change’.
Among its achievements was a successful campaign in South Australia to change the offence of ‘unlawful sexual relationship with child’ to the more accurate ‘sexual abuse of a child’.
The foundation had been criticised for moving away from its original purpose as a campaigning vehicle to funding counselling services and legal fees for sexual abuse survivors, which were services already offered by other, more established charities.
While Tame will still be involved with her foundation on an advocacy level she will not be involved in the day-to-day running of the charity.
This, along with her rumoured split from fiancé Max Heerey who she met through running app Strava, will ensure Tame can focus on her other pursuits including her newfound marathon career.
She is also a qualified yoga teacher and an aspiring artist.
Tame will be competing in several upcoming races including the Surf City Marathon in LA on February 2, the Kilamanjaro Marathon in Tanzania on February 23, the Noosa Ultra-Trail on March 22 and the Hobart Marathon on April 6.
