IT’S ALL MOVING FAST FOR COAST IN THE LEAD-UP
IT’S hard to believe that today marks six months – or just 182 days – until the GC2018 Opening Ceremony at Carrara Stadium.
If you consider that the Gold Coast won the right to stage the Games five years, 10 months and 23 days ago, we are certainly heading into the home stretch in delivery of this huge world event.
It’s equally astonishing to think that at this time 35 years ago the Brisbane 1982 Commonwealth Games were in full swing.
Forty-six nations took part with 1583 athletes competing in 12 sports.
Brisbane 1982 captured a moment in time and are a Games fondly remembered by the athletes who competed or the people that watched them.
They reflected the wonderful lifestyle and spirit of our beautiful State, as will ours in April next year.
To illustrate the explosive growth of the Commonwealth Games, just three and a half decades later GC2018 will host three times as many athletes across 18 sports and seven para-sports.
Yes, things are certainly moving ahead at an incredible rate.
On Monday the Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk officially handed GOLDOC the keys to the $550 million Parklands project which will be that home away from home for our GC2018 participants.
Talk to any Olympic or Commonwealth Games athlete and invariably one of their most enduring memories is their time in the Village; meeting fellow athletes from a range of sports and all parts of the world, eating and socialising with them and enjoying the unique experience they are sharing.
TALK TO ANY OLYMPIC OR COMMONWEALTH GAMES ATHLETE AND INVARIABLY ONE OF THEIR MOST ENDURING MEMORIES IS THEIR TIME IN THE VILLAGE MEETING FELLOW ATHLETES
Ours is a colourful, spacious and welcoming Village like no other ever presented at a Commonwealth Games.
It will give the athletes every opportunity to rest, relax and prepare for their competitions in the best possible way.
GC2018 is, after all, their Games.
As you see on these pages each week, there is much happening as the countdown clock ticks ever-louder and we all get ready to share the dream of GC2018 with the world.