Tag: suburban

Queensland’s Liberal National party leader says people are “embarrassed” by a Labor proposal to host major Olympic events at a suburban athletics stadium, which the 2032 Games’ organising committee says needs to be properly costed.

David Crisafulli on Wednesday renewed criticism of the bid to use the ageing Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (Qsac) for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics as “neither visionary nor cost effective” and said it would not meet the future needs of the city.

“I don’t think there’s any scenario where any Queenslander looks at that plan and doesn’t see anything but cringeworthiness from a desperate government,” Crisafulli said.

The opposition leader said Queenslanders were “so embarrassed” by the government’s handling of a “once in a generation opportunity to deliver generational infrastructure”.

He has flagged a review of infrastructure if the LNP wins government at the 26 October state election.

The Labor government committed to giving Qsac a facelift for the games, even after it was ruled out as a venue by an independent review, in March. Under the proposal the 100 metres final could be held in the smallest athletics stadium since Amsterdam’s in 1928.

The premier, Steven Miles, on Wednesday said the project validation report on Qsac would not be delivered until the second quarter of 2025.

Andrew Liveris, the president of the Games’ organising committee, said the body could not take a position on the stadium until costings were delivered.

“We’ve been very, very clear. I’ve been very, very clear that until we see numbers on Qsac there is no position Brisbane 2032 is taking,” he told reporters on Wednesday.

“We need to know the cost aspect of what would be an athletic stadium.

“In terms of the Olympics and the delivery, we’re committed to a budget – $5bn – and we’ve got to get that budget right.

“You just have to be in the Stade de France [during the Paris Olympics], watching the sevens rugby with 80,000 people providing revenue and top sponsors providing revenue, to understand the power of having a right-sized stadium.”

Liveris said there were two major lessons from Paris 2024 – the athlete experience and the fan experience.

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While Paris had 40,000 gendarmes on the streets for security, he said their presence was never felt.

Paris also successfully integrated the fan experience with their venues.

Brisbane had an activation site in the city of love that saw 1.5 million people view their billboard that was held at an Australian-owned coffee shop in the French capital.

Slowly but surely Brisbane is finding its place on the world stage and the globe will know Queensland’s capital when the Los Angeles Games come around in 2028, Liveris said.

Importantly, time is on the sunshine state’s side.

“We have 2,865 days to get this right,” Liveris said.

“Paris were still deciding on venues 600 days out. Los Angeles still hasn’t finalised many of their venues for many of their sports.

“So, please don’t panic. We’ve got this.”

When asked about the biggest thing Brisbane can learn from Paris on Wednesday, the Labor minister Grace Grace quipped: “Not to swim in the Seine.”