READY TO STEP IT UP
Coast may be on a winner for major bid
THE Gold Coast’s Commonwealth Games can show the world that Queensland deserves to host the 2032 Olympics, according to demographer Bernard Salt.
Mr Salt, one of the country’s most astute demographers, said that attention after the Commonwealth Games should quickly turn to a bid for southeast Queensland to host the world’s ultimate sporting spectacle.
He said securing the Olympics, which would likely see events shared throughout the region, would be a guaranteed way to prevent the kind of post-Commonwealth Games hangover that has plagued many cities after major events.
“Some cities have suffered a post-event malaise – Sydney languished for a decade after its Olympics in 2000,” he said. “Some say that the sheer cost of the 2004 Athens Olympics hastened Greece’s financial woes later in the decade.
“(But) other cities, like Barcelona (1992) and even London (2012) it is argued, were left with city-changing infrastructure and an enhanced gravitas. Let’s hope that the Gold Coast scores well on both of these counts, and I am sure it will.”
He said host cities were often rewarded for entering a new era.
“Cities get the gong for both Commonwealth and Olympic Games because of the strength of their bid, but also in order to showcase a ‘coming of age’,” he said.
“Seoul signalled South Korea’s rise when it hosted the 1988 Olympics.
“Beijing showcased the new China in 2008.”
He said the Gold Coast was Australia’s answer to Miami in the US, fast creating its own legacy, with brand new sporting stadiums complemented by a booming tourism industry and rapid gains in infrastructure, including the lightrail network and the health and knowledge precinct.
“The Gold Coast is a city that has been created by the will of the Australian people,” he said. “It is to Australia what Miami is, in concept, to America. It is a retirement destination, a holiday destination, a destination for Australian and international tourists. It is a city built on services that is moving rapidly to expand its economic base into health and education.”
Los Angeles has already been awarded the 2028 Olympics, but the race for 2032 has only just begun.
A decision on the host city is still several years away, leaving southeast Queensland with a perfect opportunity to formulate a blueprint for an Olympic bid.
Mr Salt said that was enough time to galvanise political leaders who have been at odds over whether Queensland should entertain an Olympic bid.
“I say we have about six years to get this right,” he said.
“Step 1 is to deliver a great Comm Games next year and I have every confidence we will do precisely that.
“Step 2 is to unify the people of southeast Queensland, of Queensland and of Australia, behind our Australian bid for the Olympic Games to be staged in a network of cities.” He said recent big-ticket sporting events had shown a move towards shared hosting rights, such as cricket and rugby World Cups, while the next European soccer tournament would feature matches in 13 countries.
“By the mid-2020s, it will become apparent to global sporting bodies that there are few cities that are capable of supporting a global event and of those that are capable, most have ‘had their turn’ several times over, including LA, London, Paris and Tokyo. It’s time to look at a new model, at a network of cities, that allows organisers to spread the load, and the PR love. It’s time for the Olympics to move to a network of cities.”
The Gold Coast and Brisbane would be obvious candidates to host the majority of events for any Olympic bid, but new facilities could be built across the southeast, in centres such as Logan, Ipswich and the Sunshine Coast.