Cycling Borobi’s home among the gum trees gives encouragement to Coolangatta’s volleyball statue bid

CURRUMBIN’S Cycling Borobi statue finally has a home among the gum trees … and lorikeets and a host of other animals at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary.

Borobi at his new home in Currumbin Sanctuary.

CURRUMBIN’S Cycling Borobi statue finally has a home among the gum trees … and lorikeets and a host of other animals at the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary.

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary (CWS) general manager Michael Kelly said he had been in discussion GOLDOC before the Games even started about ensuring that there was a legacy piece located within the Sanctuary.

“GOLDOC agreed and we secured the Borobi statue that was on the Currumbin beachfront, which was appropriate given the cycling events that went right past our front door,” he said.

Concerns had been raised by Currumbin MP Jann Stuckey that the area might loose the statue and she had called for it to be located at the Sanctuary which she said would make a “perfect fit”.

Mr Kelly said Cycling Borobi was now greeting guests in the Lorikeet Arena which is a free area of the Sanctuary and anyone could come in and have a photo with him at any time.

Mr Kelly said it was a fitting that the Games mascot located on site because the Currumbin Wildlife Hospital Foundation receiving a portion of the sale of Borobi plush in an agreement entered into around two years ago.

“The agreement involved an upfront payment of $50,000 and a further payment of $50,000 at the end of the Games if the sale of Borobi plush was successful,” he said.

“Borobi was a massive hit with plush lines selling out midway through the Games.”

And while one southern Gold Coast Borobi remains in the area, the future of Beach Volleyball Borobi is far less clear.

Gold Coast Division 14 councillor Gail O’Neill is calling for the statue, which was located near the beach volleyball stadium at Coolangatta, to be returned to the beach.

The statue is now facing the Gold Coast Highway at the Broadbeach South light rail station.

“I understand that statue was the Department of Transport’s property and it is now standing facing the Gold Coast Highway at the South Broadbeach light rail station,” she said.

“He is there with his beach volleyball kilometres away from where the actual sport was contested when I believe he should be back in Coolangatta by the beach.

“The statues don’t belong to the Gold Coast City Council but I think they should be left in location where the sports they represented were held — Broadbeach is a long way from Coolangatta and I hope we see him back down on the southern Gold Coast eventually.

“Perhaps we need to start a campaign to bring back Borobi to Cooly.”