Can you believe it’s been 16 years since she won our hearts at the Sydney Olympics?

Jennifer Fletcher

It’s been 16 years since Nikki Webster won us over with her amazing performance at the Sydney Olympic Games opening ceremony back in 2000.

But speaking ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics to the Daily Mail, the 29-year-old says that he time in the spotlight made her “grow up a lot quicker.”

“It was an amazing experience and journey for me and continues to be because it was such an amazing moment for our country… being Australian and being able to represent my country,” she reveals.

And speaking of the backlash the now mum-of-one faced after her public profile grew, she says it made her become “thick skinned.”

When Nikki turned 18 she celebrated by stripping down for the covers of men’s magazines FHM and Zoo.

“It made me grow a thick skin. It made me grow up a lot quicker in terms of I knew what I wanted, and what I wanted was to prove a lot of people wrong.

“I guess it gave me a lot of life experience,” she added. “I’m not angry at anyone for it, it is what it is and it happens to a lot of people in this country.”

Now Nikki is a mum to her two-and-half-year-old daughter Skylah, and is a dance teacher.

Source: Yahoo