Brisbane Games must fit the region, says IOC

The Brisbane 2032 Olympics must fit the city and the region and not the other way round, the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday, less than two weeks after plans to construct a new stadium were scrapped.

The Brisbane 2032 Olympics must fit the city and the region and not the other way round, the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday, less than two weeks after plans to construct a new stadium were scrapped.

The existing Lang Park stadium will host the Games' opening and closing ceremonies after the Queensland government rejected the recommendation of a review that a new A$3.4 billion arena be built in the city.

The Quirk Review was commissioned by the government to look into a plan to rebuild the city's Gabba cricket ground to host the ceremonies and athletics at the Games as part of a A$2.7 billion redevelopment of the Woolloongabba suburb.

Queensland Premier Steven Miles, however, decided the stadium would be upgraded rather than torn down and rebuilt.

"For us the messaging is clear: the Games will need to fit the region," Kirsty Coventry, who heads the IOC's Coordination Commission, said in a media call following a meeting with Brisbane Games organisers.

"They (region) need to decide what's best for them and everyone who lives in these areas, and the Games will adapt to that."

She said with the Games still more than eight years away this was the time for any major changes.