Brisbane 2032 Olympics: Key concerns emerge over Games delivery
Brisbane’s Olympic preparations face critical hurdles as Games chief Andrew Liveris warns the city lacks essential hotels and workers to deliver the 2032 event.
Brisbane’s lack of hotels and a shortage of skilled labour to deliver Queensland’s mammoth Olympic and Paralympic Games build are keeping 2032 boss Andrew Liveris awake at night.
The Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee president told the QUT Business Leaders’ Forum he considered delivering the Games an opportunity rather than a challenge.
“I’m having keep-me-up-at-night moments from time to time,” Mr Liveris said.
“(The) lack of suitable accommodation.
“We need hotels, we need accommodation.”
Mr Liveris said the Olympic-related build, coupled with some 600 people moving to South East Queensland every week, meant the state needed more skilled migration.
“We need human capital like no tomorrow,” he said.
“Skilled labour is a country issue.
“We have a big (infrastructure) spend, but the whole country has a spend.
“I think labour is going to be another keep-you-up-at-night moment.”
Mr Liveris said Brisbane, unlike Los Angeles and Paris, would not be making significant changes to its venue plan in the years before the Games.
“I don’t think we’re going to get dramatic tinkering in the year or two or three before but look, things happen, as long as the bulk of it stays true then I can sleep at night,” he said.
Mr Liveris will on Friday announce the four advisory groups tasked with supporting his slimmed-down organising board. The four – Host Mayors, Commercial, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Athletes and Sport – will deliver expert advice to the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee board.
Olympic basketballer Patty Mills will join the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisory group, which will be chaired by dual Olympian Patrick Johnson.
“The first priority for the group will be to agree the approach to engaging with traditional owners,” Mr Johnson said.
Susie O’Neill leads the Athletes and Sport group, which includes seven Olympians with 36 medals between them.
“We have the lived experience at the table to contribute to delivering a world-class Games time experience for Olympians and Paralympians in 2032,” Ms O’Neill said.
The leaders of Gold Coast, Cairns, Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Logan and Moreton Bay are on the host mayors’ advisory panel, chaired by Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner.
Greg Norman, Brett Clark, Rebecca Frizelle and Rob Scott are on the commercial advisory panel, led by Mr Liveris.
The 2032 president said the Brisbane 2032 board could not have remained at 25 people.
“It would resemble the United Nations and I’ve already told you the United Nations has failed so we needed to do something,” he said.
“This is a project we’re delivering on time, on or under budget, in a certain time frame. Advisory groups will have their deep wells of knowledge.”
Brisbane’s Olympic and Paralympic Games emblems will be launched in the first half of next year along with the 2032 sports program and matching events to venues.
Mr Liveris said that the Brisbane 2032 Games vision, released later this year, would capture the “mojo” of the event.
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