Riding wave of support
Surf sports chase Olympic bid for 2032 Queensland Games
It’s sport with a cause chasing a spot on the biggest stage at the 2032 Olympics, with an array of greats in its corner and recognised worldwide thanks to a hit US TV show popular in the 1990s.
Now life saving is out to ride a wave of local support, popularity and its iconic and humanitarian status all the way to the southeast Queensland Olympics.
With 150 national organisations including Finland, Austria, Albania, Bangladesh and Cameroon, 30 million members and major competitions like world and European championships already in play, athletes from around the globe are ready to answer the Olympic call in a sport they believe will add enormous value, produce great television ratings and appeal to a new legion of young fans.
Already an established talent pool for sports like kayaking, swimming, surfing and rowing, life saving now wants to be on the Olympic stage itself where top athletes will showcase the skills which help save thousands of lives each year.
“The time is right,’’ said Graham Ford, International Life Saving Federation president.
“Having the Olympics here in 2032 is a great opportunity because of the big connection with surf in southeast Queensland.’’
And in their corner is an array of surf life saving and Olympic greats, including iron legends Trevor Hendy and Karla Gilbert, and Olympic kayaking champion turned Paris Games assistant Chef de Mission Ken Wallace.
“It’s a dream come true. For kids who are 16 or 17, they are going to be hitting their prime at Brisbane and this gives them an amazing pathway, something very special to chase,’’ said multiple ironman champion and legend Hendy, who travelled to the US to meet stars of the life saving series Baywatch, including The Hoff, David Hasselhoff, and Pamela Anderson.
“The colour and the history of the movement is huge in life saving and life guarding worldwide.”
Multiple ironwoman champion Gilbert believes the sport would be an Olympic success story. “It’s about good people and family, its iconic, has traditions and it gets the whole community involved,’’ she said.
“We are one of the toughest sports with real skills needed in the ocean and we don’t take a back seat.
“The beauty of the sport is that there could be people lining up who saved lives. That’s pretty unique. Not many people have that in sport.’’
The proposed Olympic events will be an ocean man and ocean woman race over an M-course and, like iron racing in Australia, will involve board, ski, run and swim legs.
There is also a proposal for a mixed teams event.
“We are not expensive, we don’t need a stadium, we have some of the most beautiful natural stadiums in the world right here,’’ Mr Ford said.
“And in Australia we have some of the biggest corporations behind the sport which is important.’’
Mr Ford said life saving had been a registered federation with the IOC since 1994 as are sports like squash and flag football, debuting in LA in 2028, and breaking which will be held at the upcoming Paris Games.
The movement in Australia has produced an assembly line of Olympians and Australian gold medallists including Beijing 2008 champion Wallace, the 2012 K4 winners, Sydney 2000 beach volleyball champion Natalia Cook, swimmers of the ilk of Susie O’Neill and Emma McKeon, surfer Sally Fitzgibbons and Rio Olympic rower Kim Crow.
Later this year the Gold Coast will host the world championships where 50 countries along with 20 developing nationals will all compete.