Queensland downplays first look at Brisbane’s Olympic Stadium

The Queensland Government has moved to state the first image of what will be Brisbane’s Olympic Stadium for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games is “illustrative only” after its disclosure in the Australian media.

Brisbane 2032 is pursuing a somewhat low-key main stadium for the Games following a major about-turn in plans back in March. At that time, the Queensland Government elected to scrap a planned major redevelopment of The Gabba and reject a review committee’s recommendation to build a new “world class stadium”.

The Gabba in Brisbane had been set for major redevelopment work ahead of the 2032 Games after the Australian and Queensland Governments in February 2023 committed more than A$7bn (£3.58bn/€4.26bn/$4.63bn) in funding to improve infrastructure ahead of the events.

The Queensland Government was due to fund the A$2.7bn redevelopment of the Gabba, while the federal Government was to provide A$2.5bn for the development of Brisbane Live, a planned 17,000-seat, multi-purpose arena in the city.

The Gabba project had been signed off by the Queensland Government in November, but was ultimately axed in favour of an option to upgrade Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) Stadium to 40,000 seats for the Games, with 14,000 seats in legacy mode, at a cost of A$1.6bn.

The first image of a revamped QSAC has now been revealed by the Sydney Morning Herald, detailing a single permanent covered grandstand, with the majority of spectators exposed to the elements in uncovered temporary seating. Brisbane 2032 is due to be held in the middle of the Australian winter.

Designed by Populous, the new-look QSAC would hold just 40,000 fans for athletics events at Brisbane 2032 before being downsized to 14,000 after the Games. A Department of State Development and Infrastructure spokesperson said the image was “illustrative only and does not reflect a final reference design for QSAC”.

The spokesperson continued: “The project validation report process, including for QSAC, involves consultation with a range of stakeholders, both internal and external to government, and (is) often supported by briefing material such as presentations, with images to aid discussions.”

As the project moves forward, the spokesperson added, more renders would be developed, “with input from Stadiums Queensland, technical advisors, the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee, and other stakeholders”.

Meanwhile, the Brisbane Times reports that a budget estimates committee has heard how the A$1.6bn budget for the project will not represent its final total. Under questioning from Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie today (Wednesday), Infrastructure Minister Grace Grace said the A$1.6bn figure, which remains untested, does not include the temporary seating.

“The IOC pays for the temporary seating,” Grace said, adding that the International Olympic Committee had a “significant budget” for temporary overlay at venues. “They don’t want to leave stadiums that then need to be maintained.”

Grace stated that “questions” had been raised over the need for a flat, concrete podium to underpin the revamped QSAC, which in itself would account for A$1bn of the estimated cost. The other A$600m, she said, would go towards replacing the current western grandstand.