seen lee

MAC.ROB student, 1997-2000
PORTRAIT GALLERY INDUCTEE, 2023
Mining Engineer / Olympian

Seen was introduced to the sport of weightlifting by Russell Webber, sports coordinator at The Mac.Robertson Girls High School, while she was studying. She participated in her first international event in 2000 while juggling her studies and training; this competition was the first of many international events for which Seen was selected as an Australian representative athlete.

Seen was the first Australian woman to medal in weightlifting at the Commonwealth Games, winning three bronze medals at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games. Seen went on to represent Australia at the London 2012 Olympic Games, where she placed fourth overall.

Seen’s weightlifting career highlights include participation in four Commonwealth Games (Manchester 2002, New Delhi 2010 – Silver medallist, Glasgow 2014, and Gold Coast 2018) as well as one Olympic Games. Seen has also represented Australia in several world championships as well as 30+ international competitions.

After more than 20 years as an elite athlete, Seen now volunteers her time to the community by coaching and mentoring weightlifters toward success in their own athletic careers.

In parallel to her sporting career, Seen works in the resource industry as a mining engineer. She completed a degree in engineering at RMIT immediately after high school and has managed to balance full-time work with training and international competitions. Seen now consults with major multinational natural resource companies, providing operational and financial consulting for metalliferous surface mining projects worldwide.