Brisbane 2032 Olympics boss backs Cairns as co-host games city

The Brisbane 2032 Olympics boss has all but backed the construction of a new first-class sporting stadium in Cairns, while outlining the blueprint for the city’s success.

Brisbane 2032 Olympics president Andrew Liveris said it's not his job to deliver stadiums but he would help advocate for infrastructure.

The Brisbane 2032 Olympics boss has all but backed the construction of a new first-class sporting stadium in Cairns, while outlining the blueprint for the city’s success.

President Andrew Liveris and his board visited Cairns on Thursday, in the organisation’s first outing since Paris 2024, to begin hammering home the vision of what the event could bring to the Far North, with local businesses, clubs and leaders.

Following his strong comments towards the Premier, urging him to consider the size and scale of the Paris venues when investing in Queensland, Mr Liveris said the French mantra of “go big” certainly should be applied to regional cities.

He said a bigger stadium built in Cairns would mean the city could potentially host more than just preliminary football matches, as was currently planned.

He pointed to the Olympics’ latest concept of “new norms” and how this ideology was the key to advocating for increased and improved infrastructure.

The Brisbane Organising Committee for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games have visited Barlow Park to inspire the next generation of Far North Queensland athletes. President of the Brisbane Organising Committee for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Dr Andrew Liveris. Picture: Brendan Radke

“New norms means Cairns, or regional cities, get a chance to be part of the Olympics – the games get awarded to a city, but under the new norm, it’s a region,” Mr Liveris said.

“So these are the first real regional games. We’re up for innovation under the new norms.”

On Wednesday, Mr Liveris said the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games showed the world the value of having an 80,000-seat stadium for the success of the Games – while his comments were directed towards the state government’s plans for Brisbane, he agreed the state had “to build some new (stadiums).”

“New norms gives us the opportunity to (build new stadiums),” he said speaking from Barlow Park.

The Brisbane Organising Committee for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games have visited Barlow Park to inspire the next generation of Far North Queensland athletes. Cairns paralympian Grant "Scooter" Patterson, former Olympic sprinter and Brisbane 2032 committee member Patrick Johnson and Olympic sprinter Ellie Beer compete in a sprint with six year old twins Isla Arcidiacono and Hudson Arcidiacono. Picture: Brendan Radke

Offering a “hint” to the region’s leaders, Mr Liveris said he was “not the reason (Cairns) builds a bigger stadium”, but noted how the Olympics could assist with advocacy for new infrastructure.

“I’d love nothing more than to help the economy of Far North Queensland,” he said.

“That’s why we’re here talking to the Mayor, and talking to the council and the community. “This is not the last visit, we’ve actually made that a mantra to go out to communities and talk to the local representatives about what they’re doing anyway, and how the Olympics can play a bigger role in helping them do it.”

An additional $44m in funding has been added to the upgrade of Barlow Park's facilities and lighting, bring the total cost of the project to $91 million, shared between the state and federal governments. Four huge new flood light towers are currently being erected at Barlow Park to bring the lighting on the field up to broadcast quality, at a cost of $7 million. Picture: Brendan Radke

But when asked about the interest from the National Rugby League in the region including the Cowboys women’s team’s potential move north, and the adoption of Papua New Guinea from 2028, Mr Liveris said professional sport would be the ultimate driver of any new venue.

“The opportunity to bring sports into a bigger community, with more attendance, more fans, the ability to have bigger venues is there independent of the Olympics, because the interest in sports is increasing,” Mr Liveris said.

“Professional sports in this country have typically been the big ticket items, they’ve got the sponsorship dollars, they’ve got the ticket revenue and we’ve seen the interest in professional sport continue to increase.”

Asked if Cairns secured a new first-class stadium, would it increase the city’s role in the Olympics, which at this stage is set to host preliminary football matches, Mr Liveris said: “Absolutely, that’s why we’re here.”

Originally published as Brisbane 2032 Olympics boss backs Cairns as co-host games city