Mark Donaldson

He crossed open ground to carry the wounded interpreter back

Mark Gregor Strang Donaldson was born in Newcastle, New South Wales, in 1979 and grew up at Dorrigo. After civilian jobs in Australia and overseas, he enlisted in the Australian Army in June 2002. He excelled during recruit training, became a rifleman in the 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, and passed Special Air Service selection in 2004.

He deployed on operations in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan. In August 2008 he was wounded during operations in Uruzgan Province, but continued serving with the Special Operations Task Group.

On 2 September, an ambush struck his combined Australian, American and Afghan convoy. Donaldson moved between firing positions and deliberately exposed himself to draw fire away from wounded men being moved to cover.

As the convoy withdrew, casualties filled the vehicles and the remaining soldiers ran alongside. Discovering that a wounded interpreter had been left behind, Donaldson crossed roughly eighty metres of open ground under fire. He carried the man back, gave first aid and returned to the fight. His actions helped the patrol survive a prolonged engagement and saved the interpreter.

Governor-General Quentin Bryce presented his Victoria Cross for Australia at Government House, Canberra, in January 2009. He became Young Australian of the Year in 2010 and later described his upbringing and service in his memoir, The Crossroad.

He continued military and public work after the award, speaking about service, responsibility and the experiences behind the decoration. His original Victoria Cross and associated medals were lent to the Australian War Memorial, where they placed his action within the history of Australia's operations in Afghanistan.