MONEY’S AN ISSUE BUT AUSSIES LOVE THE GAMES

BRISBANE’S successful bid for the 2032 Olympics has received a mixed response. However, there probably hasn’t been one announcement in the history of the Olympics that has been any different.

Hosting brings with it an enormous expense and pressure but Sydney 21 years ago proved again Aussies know how to put on a good show.

The timing of Brisbane’s bid and subsequent success in the midst of a pandemic has given those antihosting good ammunition.

Opponents hate the idea of billions of dollars not being spent on roads, health and essential infrastructure and services. This is even harder to swallow when you’re from outside the Great South-East and you can’t even have two lanes of traffic open across the Barron River.

We can’t afford to be left with cap in hand while money is tipped into the southeast. The state government has to make good on its pledge to make the Olympics about Queensland.

Tourism benefits pre and post event must flow throughout the state and if we are to host football events, decent investment must go in to our facilities.

For a city the size of Cairns our rectangular stadium offering is embarrassing.

A decade is a long time though but the Tokyo Olympics offer a little window to how we might feel in 2032.

News Corp has a team of journalists in Japan covering the Olympics and data from its entire network including the Cairns Post and external assets such as Fox Sports prove one thing — Australians love the Games.

So while we must hold our governments to account we need also to think about the benefits of hosting the 2032 Games.

Sport can bring nations together and there is nothing more true blue than the Green and Gold.