‘Terrible embarrassment for Australian sport’: IOC vice president John Coates
John Coates, vice-president of the International Olympic Committee, says Victoria should not have bid for the 2026 Commonwealth Games without its business case ‘stacking up’.
Olympic supremo John Coates has said the cancellation of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games is a “terrible embarrassment for Australian sport”.
The news has devastated the sports world, while a high-ranking event official said the Victorian government was “repeatedly” warned about hosting the Games in regional areas but “they wouldn’t be told”.
Mr Coates, one of the world’s leading sporting administrators who has been involved in every Olympic summer games since 1976, says the Victorian government should not have bid for the games without their business case “stacking up”.
“This is a terrible embarrassment to Australian sport,” Mr Coates, who is vice-president of the International Olympic Committee, told The Australian.
“We shouldn’t be bidding for events unless we know that we have the necessary commitments and support of the various governments – and unless the business case stacks up, clearly though from what Daniel Andrews is telling us now, it didn’t – and it didn’t support [the business case].
“I think the other thing is and we’re seeing now the individual sport model goes pretty well because it’s over a longer period. The Matildas are playing for an extended period with 32 teams involved in the World Cup. The rugby World Cup in 2027 – I believe they will be a great successes. And you have to wonder then, what is the future for the Commonwealth Games?”
Coates, who last year stepped down as the Australian Olympic Committee president after 32 years, said he was always concerned about the regional games model floated by the Victorian government.
“I haven’t studied the financials for it, but I was always sceptical about the viability of a regional games,” Coates said.
“The way you’ve got to build venues or create temporary venues, when there are very big venues already existing in Melbourne. Then there is the ticketing revenue which is going to be less…how the government could have got it so wrong – I don’t know”.
Coates said there is a push in other states to take the Games but he said the federal government would need to come to the party on security.
“But you can’t do any of this unless the federal government is going to come to the party on security. Andrews, in his press conference, referred to $7 billion, including security. Security is not cheap. That is something they never got a commitment on. We’ve got that commitment for Brisbane [Olympics in 2032] security these days and there’s cyber security. That all begs the question; if the federal government has said no to Victoria on these matters how can they politically say yes to another state?”
High-ranking event industry officials said that the Victorian government had been repeatedly warned of a cost blow out by hosting the Commonwealth Games in regional areas.
“But the Victorian Government wouldn’t be told,” they said. “With the Games being hosted in so many different regional places, the cost was going to be five times the amount [of it being hosted solely in Melbourne].”
The case in point was the proposal to build a temporary velodrome in Bendigo when there is already an international velodrome at John Cain Arena in Melbourne.
“Event industry professionals always had eyebrows raised about why you would leave so many world class venues empty,” a source said. “They had all the infrastructure in and around Melbourne …”
“It was done to get votes for the election in regional Victoria, and so now, the actual cancelling is a smart political move, no one is fussed…but the sports will care …”
Rugby was the first sport to react to the shock cancellation of Victoria’s 2026 Games.
Men’s Rugby Sevens has been played at every Commonwealth Games since Kuala Lumpur 1998, with a women’s event played for the first time at Gold Coast 2018.
Rugby Australia chair Hamish McLennan has called for other states to step in to host the Games.
“Victoria is a state of sports mad fans – and they’ve got a great track record in hosting major sporting events – it’s hugely disappointing news they’ve had to cancel…,” McLennan said.
“I guess the other states have an opportunity the step up and step in. The other states should do a combined bid. Share it around”
The MCG is a front runner to host the 2027 rugby World Cup final.
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