O'Donnell was a medical practitioner and surgical assistant before taking up cycling,[2] and later returned to medicine to work in health assessment.[3][4]
O'Donnell is a medical doctor, graduating from the University of Queensland's school of medicine in 1998, and was appointed the inaugural head of the Office for Women in Sport and Recreation for the Victorian State Government in 2017.[6][7] She was employed by Australian TV network Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) as a commentator for the 2020 Tour de France, the first woman to do so for SBS. She has continued to commentate on every Tour de France since.[8][9]
In May 2021 O'Donnell was appointed to the board of the Collingwood Football Club. She came under fire for being a Western Bulldogs supporter and not having been a club member for the required two years.[10] She resigned after four months after accepting a COVID-19 response role with the Department of Health.[11]
.jpg)
