Mulwala’s Liz Seeliger travelled the world performing with Holiday on Ice.
Liz Seeliger (née Steward) was 13 when she first laced up her skates at the famous St. Moritz Ice Rink in St Kilda.
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She had no idea she was stepping into a life that would span continents, stage lights, world leaders, and two sports she would come to master.
What began as a girlfriend’s suggestion quickly became a lifelong passion, and led her to her husband, Peter, who she met at the rink.
Liz’s family shared her love of performance. Her late sister Chris was an accomplished ballerina, while Liz found her artistry on the ice.
By 17, she was already breaking barriers in another field, becoming Victoria’s first female computer programmer after completing IBM’s inaugural training course.
But skating remained her first love, and in 1959 she was invited to perform in the Ice Spectacular, broadcast nationally on ABC.
In 1968, Liz joined the world-renowned Holiday on Ice and for the next two and a half years she travelled the globe with 70 international performers, often against the backdrop of wars and political unrest.
Liz doing what she loved most before returning to Australia.
Along the way, she met global figures such as King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, and U.S. President Richard Nixon at the embassy parties which became part of the troupe’s extraordinary lifestyle.
Her dazzling international career came to a halt when her mother fell ill.
She returned home, married Peter and continued skating at the Oakleigh Ice Rink.
In 1985, the family moved to Yarrawonga, where Liz returned to waterskiing, which she had discovered during her skating years.
She joined the Mulwala Water Ski Show Team where she taught the girls choreography, inspired by her skating days, and designed the costumes for three years.
Even after retiring, Liz kept contributing.
She worked with the Miss Australia Awards and later facilitated the Look Good Feel Better program for women undergoing cancer treatment.
A major stroke forced her into four years of rehabilitation, but she turned the challenge into a mission to promote exercise and wellbeing.
At home in Mulwala with her husband, Peter Seeliger, who she met at the ice rink.
Liz now spends five or six hours a week exercising at the Mulwala Hall and swims at Corowa Pool three times a week.
“Age is a privilege to stay active and make it a pleasure,” she said.
“The biggest thing with exercise is you have to make the effort.”
“The ice rink was my happy place, and now the pool is my happy place.”
Her community involvement remains strong.
Liz serves on the Ageing Well Advisory Committee for Federation Council, the Corowa Aquatic Centre Pool Advisory Committee, and contributes to the Vitality Passport Program, which teaches people across southern Murrumbidgee how to age well.
She is also active with the Save Mulwala Action Group.
From ice rinks to ski shows, from international tours to local committees, Liz Seeliger has lived a life defined by resilience, creativity, and service.
Her story is a reminder that passion, movement, and purpose can carry us further than we ever imagine.
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