The gold winning Australian eventing team at Sydney 2000 Photo courtesy Julie Wilson
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has confirmed Brisbane, Australia as its preferred candidate for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games
The announcement came following the Executive Board’s meeting on 24th February, following the recommendation of the Future Host Commission for the Games of the Olympiad to enter into ‘targeted dialogue for the Games of the XXXV Olympiad’.
The Future Host Commission was created in 2019 to identify and recommend venues for the Games as opposed to the previous costly and cut-throat ‘city bidding’ system where winners were announced seven years in advance. Brisbane is likely to be the first city awarded a Summer Olympic Games under this new selection process. Countries such as Qatar, India, Indonesia, China, Germany and Hungary, had also expressed an interest in staging the Games in 2032 and will be involved in on-going discussions, should Brisbane fail to meet the final requirements
“The decision to advance the process was taken at this particular moment, given the uncertainty the world is facing right now” say the IOC “This uncertainty is expected to continue even after the COVID-19 health crisis is over. The IOC is considering seizing the momentum offered by the excellent project of Brisbane 2032 and the AOC, in this way, bringing stability to the Olympic Games, the athletes, the IOC and the whole Olympic Movement.”
The Future Host Commission will now start a targeted dialogue with the Brisbane 2032 Committee and the AOC and will report back to the IOC EB on the outcome of these discussions in due course. If all the requirements are met, the IOC EB can propose the election of the future host of the Games of XXXV Olympiad to the IOC Session. If the discussions are not successfully concluded, Brisbane 2032 will re-join the continuous dialogue
At the same time, the Future Host Commission will also maintain the continuous dialogue with the other interested parties, in order to further develop their excellent and promising projects, be it for the Olympic Games 2032 if the Targeted Dialogue with Brisbane 2032 and the AOC is not successful, or for the Olympic Games 2036 and other future Olympic events.
According to the IOC press release, the main reasons why Brisbane 2032 was proposed for the targeted dialogue are:
- The very advanced Games concept, which is fully aligned with Olympic Agenda 2020 and using 80 to 90 per cent existing or temporary venues.
- The venue masterplan, which has already been discussed with International Sports Federations and the International Paralympic Committee.
- The high level of experience in hosting major international sports events.
- The favourable climate conditions for athletes in July and August, despite the current global challenges caused by climate change.
- The alignment of the proposed Games with South-East Queensland’s long-term strategy (“SEQ City Deal”, February 2019) to improve local transport infrastructure, absorb demographic change and promote economic growth.
- Australia’s sporting success throughout modern Olympic history. The last Games in Oceania were Sydney 2000, which would mean the Games returning to the continent 32 years later.
- The existing and planned transport infrastructure and experience in traffic management, which can adequately meet the demands of the Olympic Games and were successfully implemented for the Commonwealth Games in 2018.
- The existing hotel accommodation inventory, which already meets Games requirements.
- Strong support from all three levels of government, as confirmed on several occasions by highest-level representatives from the City of Brisbane, the Southeast Queensland Council of Mayors, the State of Queensland and the federal government.
- The strong public support and that of the private sector.
- Australia’s high scores on human development indices, in particular its great progress towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
In evaluating Brisbane 2032’s proposal, the IOC also took into consideration detailed information from independent third-party sources, including the World Bank, the International Labour Organization, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and numerous UN agencies including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
IOC President Thomas Bach said: “The commitment of Australia and Oceania to Olympic sports has grown remarkably since the fantastic Olympic Games Sydney 2000. This is why we see such strong public support. We decided to seize an opportunity to take to the next stage our discussions about returning 32 years later. In this way, we are also acknowledging the strength of the Australian team and other athletes from across the continent of Oceania at the Olympic Games over the past decades.”
Chair of the Future Host Commission for the Games of the Olympiad Kristin Kloster Aasen added: “We are delighted the IOC Executive Board agreed with the Commission’s recommendation to invite Brisbane 2032 to targeted dialogue. The IOC EB and the Commission noted the excellent progress that it has made, the strength of its proposition and the strategic opportunities it affords to the Olympic Movement. It meets all the criteria to be invited to move into the next stage.”
