Chyloe Kurdas is a former elite Australian Rules footballer and television and radio sports commentator. She spent ten years with AFL Victoria, building the catalyst for Australia’s first-ever national women’s professional competitions: AWFL. Following her time at AFL Victoria, Chyloe served as the Female Engagement Senior Manager with Golf Australia for five years before becoming the Inclusion and Diversity Manager with the Australian Red Cross. 

Chyloe grew up in a mixed heritage home in Australia. Her father was a Muslim Turkish immigrant and her mother, a Hungarian Catholic refugee. Her home provided a very open environment that allowed for a lot of independence. Both parents were particularly committed to education for their children, which meant Chyloe was allowed to participate in sports as long as she did well in school. “My parents were very much working class and as a result, I grew up in a really multicultural neighborhood,” she says. “There were other families in the neighborhood from Turkey and Lebanon, but none who allowed their daughters to play sports. This realization made me even more thankful for my family, especially my father’s support.”