A new look for Brisbane’s Chandler Sports Precinct has been revealed as preparations for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The precinct, 15km south-east of the Brisbane CBD will undergo a $257-million makeover for the Games.
At the centre of the precint is Brisbane Aquatic Centre, which was built for the 1982 Commonwealth Games. Major upgrades are planned for it ahead of the Games.
Queensland development and infrastructure minister Grace Grace said that upgrades to pool and diving facilities at the centre would “ensure this facility extends its legacy as the home of high-performance swimming and diving, as well as providing an even better experience to the 400,000 community users who visit each year”.
A new Indoor Sports Centre is part of the makeover and includes 10,000 spectator seats across two halls with 10 multi-sport courts plus a 2400sq m gymnastics facility.
Lighting, accessibility and connectivity between buildings will be improved in the precinct, while a new green hub with meeting spaces will be added.
“The Chandler Sports Precinct has held a special place in the hearts of Queenslanders since it hosted the swimming and diving events at the 1982 Commonwealth Games, and is a great example of the legacy hosting major sporting events can leave,” Queensland tourism and sports minister Michael Healy said.
“The venue has been instrumental as a training and competition space ever since, especially for school carnivals, regional, state, and national championships.
“When it comes to the new Indoor Sports Centre, we know that during the 2020-2022 period community basketball participation in our state increased a whopping 79 per cent, and we need to build facilities to support these healthy lifestyle choices.”
Funding for the upgrades is coming from the Federal and Queensland governments, including from the $1.87-billion Minor Venues Program.
While there are more than eight years until the Games, a quarter of the facilities receiving funding through the Minor Venues Program will be out for tender in coming months, and about half of the facilities and venues will be out for tender by the end of this year.
The work of handling the tenders for the program will transfer to the newly established independent Games Venue and Legacy Delivery Authority.
“In the past few weeks, we have put details of more than a quarter of a billion dollars of tenders supporting 1,000 jobs in the market, passed legislation to establish an independent delivery authority, and appointed Emma Thomas as its interim CEO,” Queensland premier Steven Miles said.
The Federal and State governments want at least 30 per cent of the work required to be done by Queensland small to medium businesses.
There is also a target of 10 to 15 per cent of all the hours on the projects to be undertaken by apprentices or trainees to build a pipeline of construction workers for the state.
The Chandler Sports Precinct receives more than 640,000 visits annually.
“It will also be a major tourism and events drawcard long into the future, with Brisbane 2032 anticipated to create a $4.6 billion boost in tourism and trade for Queensland,” Healy said.
The Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee, the IOC and the International Paralympic Committee will consult with relevant international sports federations to determine the final list of venues for each event.
Meanwhile, there has been many a stumble in the lead up to the Paris 2024 Olympics with some swimming events now organised to be held in the River Seine instead of the purpose-built pool due to it not meeting IOC standards.
An anti-corruption investigation has also focused on the Paris Olympics Committee headquarters to determine how contracts for construction of venues and facilities were handled.
