Brisbane Olympics 2032: Rivals furious over south-east Queensland bid

Rival countries are furious over the success of south-east Queensland’s Olympics bid, but has the IOC made the right call?

It isn’t just rival bidders that are miffed that Brisbane has all but been assured of hosting the 2032 Olympics and Paralympics.

A handful of countries in Asia, Europe and the Middle East have been crying foul that south-east Queensland got the jump on them to be named as the preferred choice for 2032 and are letting everyone know about it.

Dagmar Freitag, who is the chair of the German Sports Committee, has gone public with her criticism of the process that saw Brisbane pushed to the head of the queue, saying it was inferior to the old system where International Olympic Committee members decided the winner with a vote.

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The apparent success of Brisbane’s bid for the 2032 Olympics has left rivals miffed.

“The new selection system, praised by IOC President Thomas Bach as ‘more cost-effective and apolitical, and also preventing any unacceptable influence’ can hardly be surpassed in terms of non-transparency,” she said.

It is an open secret that plenty of Olympic members prefer the old voting system because it gave them a bigger say in determining the winner – and the announcement was undoubtedly a more dramatic moment than the bland announcement this week that Brisbane was in the box seat – but thankfully wiser heads have prevailed.

The IOC cops a lot of flak that is often deserved but in this case, Olympic officials got it exactly right when they changed their outdated system for selecting hosts.

That method was failing badly because it had become far too expensive for smaller populated regions like Southeast Queensland to win when they were up against megacities and the IOC needs to cut costs to keep more candidates interested to ensure the survival of the world’s biggest multi-sports event.

All the moaning about lack of transparency is just sour grapes because the IOC’s new system — part of a stack of reforms that have been introduced since Bach took over in 2013 — have been clearly explained to every country wanting to bid for the Games and the only reason Brisbane is the preferred candidate is because Queensland’s bid was better than all the others.

TOKYO FALLOUT

The fallout in Japan over the sexist remarks from the former Tokyo Olympics boss Yoshiro Mori shows no sign of abating.

Even though the former Japanese Prime Minister resigned from his role as President of Tokyo 2020, more than 1000 people who had agreed to serve as volunteers during the Games have quit specifically because of Mori’s comments.

New Zealand’s Tall Blacks have withdrawn from Olympic qualifying.

TALL BLACKS

New Zealand have surprisingly pulled out of the final qualifying event for the Tokyo Olympic basketball competition, citing a lack of funds. The Philippines will take New Zealand’s place in the upcoming final stage of qualifying, in Serbia, after Kiwis officials announced they were pulling out because they didn’t have enough money.

“In these unprecedented times we must consolidate, or we risk something far greater and that’s not seeing any international basketball for the Tall Ferns or Tall Blacks over the next four-year cycle,” Basketball New Zealand chief executive Iain Potter said.

New Zealand’s national men’s team, the Tall Blacks, have not qualified for the Olympics since 2004.

VOLLEYBALL DUO TELLS AFL PLAYERS TO HARDEN UP

Selina Steele

A pandemic pause and stints spent truck driving and school teaching have primed Chris McHugh and Damien Schumann for a last-ditch attempt at the Tokyo Olympics.

McHugh and Schumann, who won beach volleyball’s first gold medal in the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast, took out the men’s crown at last weekend’s Australian Beach Volleyball Championships in Manly.

And in doing so sent a message not to just their international opponents but to Australia’s professional sporting stars.

“A few AFL players should go and do a week’s work somewhere and then they might stop whinging about having to be on holidays on the Gold Coast,” Schumann, 33, said.

“There’s nothing we wouldn’t do to be at the Tokyo Olympics and as for all the athletes I hear whinging about going into a hub - give it a rest.

“Our whole competitive lives are spent overseas on tour, we go away for two to three months at a time.

“What’s two weeks in quarantine to make sure everyone is safe and the Games can go on.”

Chris McHugh and Damien Schumann are still looking for a trip to Tokyo after a covid affected year. Picture: Damian Shaw

As part of the Olympic playbook released earlier this month, which included advice from the World Health Organisation, singing and chanting will be banned at Tokyo.

Athletes will be tested every four days and competitors will be expected to take a coronavirus test 72 hours before their departure for Tokyo and show negative result on arrival.

There are no guarantees that fans will be able to attend and coaches, support staff and athletes have been told to clap rather than any vocal or physical displays of encouragement.

Which in the disco-inspired hedonistic atmosphere of beach volleyball is an alien ask.

Additionally at Tokyo’s beach volleyball venue Shiokaze Park, balls will be wiped down with disinfectant in between games.

McHugh added: “We’re just so lucky to be playing at the moment. We have to do what we have to do to keep everyone safe.”

“But it’s going to be hard not to scream and shout, it will actually be a massive challenge - it’s the Olympic Games!”

The Adelaide pairing is yet to qualify for the Games, they must win the Continental Cup in China in June to qualify as there is only one spot up for grabs in Asia.

McHugh said: “The break has been good for us. I’ve had a couple of knee surgeries since Gold Coast and it’s allowed me to manage that better.

“Physically it’s the best I’ve been for a long time.

“And I’ve seen my son Jack start to crawl and talk ... it’s been amazing to be there for those big moments.”

Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar are on fire heading into Tokyo on fire. Picture: Damian Shaw

Rio Olympians Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Taliqua Clancy, considered one of the best players in the world, won the women’s crown at last weekend’s nationals.

The pair’s stunning success on the world stage, a world championship bronze medal and

11 world tour medals from 22 FIVB events, that has whispers of the first Olympic beach volleyball medal since Cook and Pottharst.

Clancy, 28, and Del Solar, 27, relocated to Queensland in July as the women’s program moved north from Adelaide.

“I definitely feel like Mariafe and I can be on top of the podium in Japan,” Clancy said.

“We weren’t at our best at the world champs with Mariafe getting injured, there’s more room for improvement so I don’t think we need to find a magic secret because we have it.

“But in a way I think we are all starting from scratch in Tokyo.

“We can’t compare results because no one is competing - and that’s exciting, it’s an open field.

Del Solar added: “We are looking to go to Europe in May or June but usually everyone is playing each other every week on the world tour.”

“But our biggest strength is that we have a good connection on court, we trust and understand each other.”

The final of the Australian Beach Volleyball Tour will be held at Coolangatta Beach, Gold Coast, from 12-14 March 2021.

Originally published as Brisbane Olympics 2032: Rivals furious over south-east Queensland bid