It’s music to our ears, it’s a sight for sore eyes and it’s a sigh of relief for the Australian events industry: Brisbane has officially been selected to host the 2032 Olympic Games!
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that securing the Games was a ‘coup for the nation’, referring to Brisbane as a ‘global city’.
The secret ballot – determining the host of the 139th Session – was held just two days before the Opening Ceremony for this years’ Olympic Games in Tokyo. Brisbane came out on top with flying colours, securing 72 ‘yes’ votes and 5 ‘no’ votes.
Excitingly, the River City was the first elected City to host under the new Olympic destination-election process. This framework will see the International Olympic Committee work with Brisbane to use a bunch of their existing and temporary venues, which will align with Brissie’s ‘long-term development plans’.
Over the next decade Brisvegas will expand the Gabba stadium and construct two new athlete villages – one in Brisbane, and one in the Gold Coast. Over 30 venues across south-east Queensland – from Brisbane, to the Gold and Sunshine Coasts, to Logan, Ipswich and the Redlands – will host the Games, as well as the Paralympics, which is set to go ahead straight after.
Research done by KPMG – commissioned by the Palaszczuk government – found that the 2032 Games could rustle up over 91,000 full-time equivalent jobs in Queensland, as well as just over 120,000 nationally.
KPMG also predicted that in hosting the 2032 Games, Queensland would be graced with over $8 billion in benefits, providing a $3.5 billion in social improvements including health, volunteering and community benefits.
Brissie has scored the longest run up ever to deliver our version of the Games, so all hands are on-deck for transforming the River City into an Olympic city.
The 139th Session of the Olympic Games will be held from July 23 to August 8, 2032. This will be the third games held Down Under, following Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000.
Cheers to you, Brisbane!
Photo: Alexa Soh
