Despite the delay, Obama still received a standing ovation from the crowd after taking to the stage to the sounds of Stevie Wonder.

The ovation was a stark contrast to earlier on Tuesday, when Sydney residents slammed the ex-President for the huge 'nuisance' motorcade that carried him and his wife Michelle through the city. 

At the event, Obama opened his talk by hailing Sydney and describing his love for the city.   

'Sydney is fantastic, we have had such a wonderful time here, it's one of the world's great cities.'

Discussing his first time visiting as an eight-year-old, he added: 'I was travelling from Indonesia where my mother was living at the time, to my grandparents in Hawaii and I was travelling unaccompanied,' he said, describing his first trip. 

'We had to stop for a day for the connecting flight and Qantas stewardess took very good care of me.'

'I had a big crush on her,' he said.