Latest news with #MikaelaCojuangcoJaworski
Malay Mail
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Malay Mail
IOC confident Brisbane 2032 Olympics is on track after key visit by coordination commission
SYDNEY, May 22 — The International Olympic Committee's confidence that Brisbane organisers were on the right path to host the 2032 Olympics has been reaffirmed by a three-day visit to the city by the coordination commission, its new chief said today. Former showjumper Mikaela Cojuangco Jaworski officially took over during the visit from IOC President-elect Kirsty Coventry as chair of the commission, which oversees preparations for the Games on behalf of the Olympic movement. 'Through our regular engagement with the organising committee, we are confident that Brisbane 2032 is on the right path,' Jaworski told a news conference in Brisbane. 'This week gave us meaningful opportunity to witness progress firsthand and to reaffirm our commitment to Games that will leave a lasting legacy for the community and place Brisbane confidently on the world stage.' Jaworski said the example of the legacies for Melbourne and Sydney when those cities hosted the Games in 1956 and 2000 should convince waverers in Brisbane of how beneficial the Olympics would be for the city. 'Melbourne has hosted, and Sydney has hosted, and there's certainly legacy there,' she said. 'There's a lot of goodwill globally remembering these cities as hosts, and I think we can count on Brisbane... being brought to the world stage (if) we have a successful Games.' Since the last meeting of the coordination commission, the Queensland government has published its third, and what it says will be the final, venue plan for the Games. Despite bid commitments on sustainability in line with the IOC's 'New Norm' reforms for host cities, the plan included the building of a new Olympic stadium and a national aquatics centre in an inner city Brisbane park. 'When you talk about the 'New Norm', I think one of the key things is about the Games being part of the city or the host,' Jaworski said in answering a question about the changes. 'It's not about turning the host into what the Games need, but the other way around. So it is unique.' Andrew Liveris, President Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee, gestures during the 3rd IOC Brisbane 2032 Coordination Commission press conference at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane May 22, 2025. — AFP pic Create certainty Local organising committee chief Andrew Liveris said it had been a relief to finally get a plan in place his team could enact, even if he did not think any ground would be broken on the big new venues until the end of 2026. 'I haven't been able to wipe the smile off my face (since the announcement),' he said. 'I love to plan and implement. It's really hard to plan when the plan keeps moving on you, right? So our job now is to create certainty out of this plan. There's work to do on that. 'We're not out of the woods completely, but we are mostly out of the woods, and we have certainty around some pretty big decisions.' Liveris said all the venues needed to be completed at least a year before the start of the Games and accepted that issues of labour shortages in Australia's construction industry and local building constraints were a concern. 'We are part of a bigger problem, and one that has to be solved by the current (Queensland) government,' Liveris said. 'They're very dedicated to doing it.' — Reuters
Washington Post
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
Next IOC president Kirsty Coventry hands over the baton in planning for Brisbane 2032 Olympics
BRISBANE, Australia — Kirsty Coventry has completed a ceremonial baton change before she takes over as International Olympic Committee president next month, handing off oversight of preparations for the Brisbane 2032 Games during a three-day inspection visit to southeast Queensland state. Mikaela Cojuangco Jaworski replaced Coventry as head of the IOC's coordination commission for the 2032 Summer Games after the Olympic swimming champion from Zimbabwe was elected to take over from Thomas Bach in the sporting organization's top job.
ABC News
22-05-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games focus shifts to ensuring venues provide 'perfect' platform for athletes
Construction on major venues for the Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games could start from next year, the 2032 organising committee president says, despite pressures on the building industry being a "concern". This week the International Olympic Committee (IOC) coordination commission was in Brisbane for the first time, since the city was announced as host in 2021. Newly-appointed coordination commission chair Mikaela Cojuangco-Jaworski said the venues plan announced by the state government in March provided a clear framework. "The focus now shifts to collaboration with the international federations to assess the technical details of the proposed venues to ensure they provide the perfect platform for the world's best athletes," she said. Brisbane 2032 president Andrew Liveris said the venues would need to be finished "well in advance", with completion by 2031 "ideal". He said the current pressures on the construction industry and availability of accommodation were a "concern". "This is an all government problem and we are going to be one of many that go to the queue." The coordination commission visited sites in Brisbane and the Gold Coast as part of its meeting, including Victoria Park, which will be home to the new 63,000-seat stadium. To build the venues, the state government has introduced a bill to parliament to give the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority power to override 15 planning laws. This includes the Environmental Protection Act, the Planning Act, the Queensland Heritage Act, the Local Government Act, and the Nature Conservation Act. Ms Cojuangco-Jaworski said the changes were about "fast tracking, and not circumventing". Mr Liveris said the privately-funded Brisbane Arena at Wooloongabba, which the government went to market for this week, would not be needed for the Games. Work is set to begin shortly on finalising the sport program for the Games. Brisbane 2032 chief executive Cindy Hook said the organising committee had been approached by more than a dozen international federations. "We will take a very fair and transparent process to evaluating those to what we can handle, what is relevant and what will have great follower-ship and ignite this nation," she said. "I just want to be realistic, we probably won't add the same six sports that LA did." The additional sports for the 2028 Games are baseball, cricket, flag football, lacrosse, squash and softball. A survey seeking the public's input on the vision for the Games has been launched today. Mr Liveris said that the eventual vision would guide every aspect of Games planning, with a number of guidance documents already established to help develop ideas and creativity. "In seven years' time, the eyes of the world will be on our country and we want to ensure that no matter where you are or where you're from, our collective Games Vision is one of hope, motivation and inspiration," he said.
Associated Press
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Incoming IOC head Coventry hands over the baton in planning for Brisbane 2032 Olympics
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Kirsty Coventry has completed a ceremonial baton change before she takes over as International Olympic Committee president next month, handing off oversight of preparations for the Brisbane 2032 Games during a three-day inspection visit to southeast Queensland state. Mikaela Cojuangco Jaworski replaced Coventry as head of the IOC's coordination commission for the 2032 Summer Games after the Olympic swimming champion from Zimbabwe was elected to take over from Thomas Bach in the sporting movement's top job. All three were part of the IOC team that met in Brisbane and Gold Coast for their first on-the-ground update on the planning overhaul from local organizers. 'I'm here to formally hand over the baton, or the Olympic flame, boomerang over to,' Jaworski, Coventry said. 'I hope that I'm leaving some good vibes.' Coventry made her Olympic competition debut at the Sydney 2000 Games and has family living in Australia, and said she feels right at home after chairing the coordination commission since soon after the IOC awarded the 2032 Games to Brisbane in 2021. 'I'm very excited about what Brisbane 2032 is going to do — not just for the region, but for Australia and for the world.' It took more than 1,000 days and major concept changes before a newly elected Queensland state government settled on a comprehensive venue plan in March. That includes a new 60,000-seat stadium and an aquatics center in the Victoria Park precinct close to downtown Brisbane, as well as proposals to share events with regions outside the capital. The surprising call to host rowing in a crocodile-inhabited river in Rockhampton on the central Queensland coast has attracted concern and criticism from the public and sports administrators. Veteran IOC Olympic Games executive director Christophe Dubi said there's time for local organizers and sports federations to consider options and collaborate, and there's absolutely no need to panic with seven years until the Brisbane Games. 'No one else but the federation can say the field of play is ready,' he said, noting who had the final sign-off on sports venues as the planning for the Olympics evolve. 'The plan always changes, and generally they change for the better,' he said. 'The question is not so much whether the plan has changed — it has — but is it a better plan? The answer is yes.' Andrew Liveris, president of the local organizing committee, said venue construction is likely to begin later in 2026 and he's confident the main building program will be complete a year out from the Games. Dubi said doubters should look at the stage Sydney planning was in seven years out from the 2000 Games. He said the selection of the greenfield site for the main stadium and aquatic center in Brisbane 'is an incredible location' and Paris 2024 organizers had set a good example in that regard. 'So if you ask me from an operational standpoint, it's absolutely doable,' he said. 'You have also this opportunity to have this venue and this number of spectators, hence creating that precinct atmosphere downtown, and that will be something incredibly special.' ___ AP Olympics at
CNA
22-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
IOC confident that Brisbane on track for 2032 Summer Games
SYDNEY :The International Olympic Committee's confidence that Brisbane organisers were on the right path to host the 2032 Olympics has been reaffirmed by a three-day visit to the city by the coordination commission, its new chief said on Thursday. Former showjumper Mikaela Cojuangco Jaworski officially took over during the visit from IOC President-elect Kirsty Coventry as chair of the commission, which oversees preparations for the Games on behalf of the Olympic movement. "Through our regular engagement with the organising committee, we are confident that Brisbane 2032 is on the right path," Jaworski told a news conference in Brisbane. "This week gave us meaningful opportunity to witness progress firsthand and to reaffirm our commitment to Games that will leave a lasting legacy for the community and place Brisbane confidently on the world stage." Jaworski said the example of the legacies for Melbourne and Sydney when those cities hosted the Games in 1956 and 2000 should convince waverers in Brisbane of how beneficial the Olympics would be for the city. "Melbourne has hosted, and Sydney has hosted, and there's certainly legacy there," she said. "There's a lot of goodwill globally remembering these cities as hosts, and I think we can count on Brisbane ... being brought to the world stage (if) we have a successful Games." Since the last meeting of the coordination commission, the Queensland government has published its third, and what it says will be the final, venue plan for the Games. Despite bid commitments on sustainability in line with the IOC's "New Norm" reforms for host cities, the plan included the building of a new Olympic stadium and a national aquatics centre in an inner city Brisbane park. "When you talk about the 'New Norm', I think one of the key things is about the Games being part of the city or the host," Jaworski said in answering a question about the changes. "It's not about turning the host into what the Games need, but the other way around. So it is unique." CREATE CERTAINTY Local organising committee chief Andrew Liveris said it had been a relief to finally get a plan in place his team could enact, even if he did not think any ground would be broken on the big new venues until the end of 2026. "I haven't been able to wipe the smile off my face (since the announcement)," he said. "I love to plan and implement. It's really hard to plan when the plan keeps moving on you, right? So our job now is to create certainty out of this plan. There's work to do on that. "We're not out of the woods completely, but we are mostly out of the woods, and we have certainty around some pretty big decisions." Liveris said all the venues needed to be completed at least a year before the start of the Games and accepted that issues of labour shortages in Australia's construction industry and local building constraints were a concern. "We are part of a bigger problem, and one that has to be solved by the current (Queensland) government," Liveris said. "They're very dedicated to doing it."
