Keynote Speakers, Hosts & Congress Presenters

Michelle Payne

Michelle Payne is one of Australia’s most admired public figures, and she is celebrated for her ground-breaking achievement of becoming the first and only woman to win the Melbourne Cup in 2015 aboard Prince of Penzance. Her victory, against odds of 100 to 1, captured the hearts of Australians and established her as a national icon.

Beyond her historic win, Michelle has excelled as a highly successful horse trainer, jockey, and author. Raised on a farm in Miners Rest, near Ballarat in Central Victoria, she is the youngest of ten children. Despite the tragic loss of her mother in a car accident when Michelle was just six months old, she was drawn to the world of horse racing, a path that was shared by many of her siblings.

Michelle’s career has not been without significant challenges. At 18, she suffered a serious fall during a race at Sandown in 2004, resulting in a fractured skull and bruising to her brain. Further falls in 2012 and 2016 led to life-threatening injuries, but her resilience and determination saw her return to the sport each time, inspiring many with her strength and perseverance.

Her impact extends far beyond the racing world. In 2016, she was awarded the prestigious Don Prize for Most Inspirational Australian Athlete at the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Awards, alongside several other accolades, including Sportswoman of the Year and the Women of Style: Sport Award. Michelle and her brother Stephen were also honoured as Queen and King of Moomba.

In recognition of her contributions to horse racing, Michelle received the International Longines Ladies Award in 2017, and in 2022 she was awarded the Order of Australia Medal (OAM). She also released a bestselling memoir, Life As I Know It, in 2016, and her life story was brought to the big screen in the 2019 film Ride Like a Girl, which became the highest-grossing Australian film that year.

In 2021, Michelle’s Melbourne Cup victory was voted the most significant moment in Sport Australia Hall of Fame history from a shortlist of 20 iconic sporting events over the past six decades. Today, she continues to inspire through her successful training operation at Nottingham Farm in Ballarat and her new venture on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.

Hamish McLachlan

Hamish McLachlan’s broadcasting journey began in horse sports and polo, where his roles as a player and administrator opened doors to local and international game-calling opportunities. To refine his skills, he spent three summers in Europe, hosting sports and charity events while commentating matches, all in pursuit of a career in Australia.

In 2008, he returned to Australia and secured his breakthrough with Channel 7 as the host of “AFL Game Day,” blending insightful analysis with lighthearted banter. His success on the show led to hosting roles for Spring Racing broadcasts and tennis commentary at the Australian Open.

Recognised as one of Australia’s premier event hosts, Hamish helmed iconic occasions like the Melbourne Cup, Rio 2016 Olympics, Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, PyeongChang Winter Olympics, and the entertainment series “Australian Spartan.” In 2019, he began hosting the prestigious Brownlow Medal Count and Coverage and, in 2020, presented the popular AFL digital series, “The Last Time I Cried.”

Beyond broadcasting, Hamish actively supports causes such as Captain Courageous, where he serves on the board, and the Royal Flying Doctor Service, where he is an ambassador. His partnership with AIA Vitality reflects his multifaceted career. Hamish resides in Melbourne with his wife Sophie and their three children and is widely sought after as an entertaining master of ceremonies, having had the privilege of interviewing the late NBA superstar Kobe Bryant at an exclusive event.

Shane Crawford

Shane Crawford is an Australian television personality, recently appearing on Dancing with the Stars and previously appearing on regularly on shows like the AFL Footy Show, Postcards and Kids’ WB. The former Australian Rules footballer played over three hundred games for Hawthorn in his fifteen-year career, earning the game’s highest individual honour – the Brownlow Medal – in 1999 before being inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame in 2012. Shane co-founded his own production company, Not So Normal Productions, and is a proud Dad to four boys.

Keith Cullen

Keith Cullen is the founder and managing director of WT Financial Group Limited and is the largest (non-institutional) shareholder. He has 37 years of experience as a corporate executive and entrepreneur across the broadcast media, technology, and financial services sectors. Keith successfully conceived and implemented the strategy to pivot the group from its previous B2C focus to a primarily B2B focus through the acquisitions of Wealth Today, Sentry Group, Synchron and Millennium3 Financial Services.

Keith is an entrepreneur and problem solver, and a creator and builder of businesses, ideas and careers. He is an empathetic, persuasive, determined and pragmatic businessman who relishes challenges and balances big picture thinking with hard work and detail orientation; and a sense-of-urgency with perseverance and grit. With a track record of success in the recruitment, training, mentoring and motivation of high-performance individuals and teams, he encourages and instils these traits in those around him.

Matthew Hawkes

Matthew brings a diverse breadth of experience across public policy, politics, strategic communications and financial services to GRACosway’s clients.

As a skilled advisor, he is experienced in providing end-to-end strategic counsel to clients seeking advice on policy development and reform at all levels of government.

Matthew works with various clients in the energy, financial services, automotive and industrial relations sectors.