APPLICATION FILE
INTRODUCTION Named the “World’s Ultimate Sports City” in 2006, 2008, and 2010, Melbourne, a modern and dynamic metropolis with a population of 4,442,918 inhabitants, is the perfect host for the Olympic Games in the 21st century. We are a city that loves sports, with 15 professional and semi-professional teams, host of several successful world-class sports events each year (including the Australian Open of Tennis and the Australian F1 Grand Prix). Named the World’s “most liveable city” by The Economist Intelligence Unit every year since 2011, we are a growing city, which could overcome Sydney as Australia’s largest city before somewhere between 2028 and 2050, according to different studies. Australia is a country that looks towards the future, part of the booming Asia-Pacific region. Hosting the games in Australia will help cement even more the Olympic Games in this part of the world. Building on the legacy of the 1956 Olympic Games, Australia hosted a great number of international events, including recently the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, the 2003 IRB Rugby World Cup, the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne and the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. Hosting the Olympics in Melbourne would send a great message of modernity and sustainability to the World. We plan to host environment-friendly games, with a lasting impact on the local communities of Melbourne. Relying mostly on existing venues, the few new permanent facilities we will build will be designed to have a purpose after the Games and improve the life of the residents of the city.
DATES OF THE GAMES The proposed dates for the Olympic Games in 2028 are from Friday, September 22th to Sunday, October 8th. However, some preliminary events would take place on the days before the opening ceremony. The Paralympic Games would take place from Wednesday, October 18th to Sunday, October 29th. These dates are similar to the period during which the 2000 Olympic Games took place in Sydney and allow the games to unfold during a warmer period than the traditional northern hemisphere summer months (July and August) while not disturbing the international sports calendar in unreasonable ways. To avoid any clash, other sports events will be moved. The AFL season, which traditionally culminates with the Grand Final at Melbourne Cricket Ground on the last Sunday of September or the first Sunday of October, will end earlier, on Sunday, September 17th, and the Grand Final will be moved to ANZ Stadium in Sydney. The NRL, which usually ends with its Grand Final on the last Sunday of September, will take a break during the games and have its two final weeks on October 15th and 22nd.
CONCEPT We propose an efficient and compact concept to offer the best Olympic experience to athletes, spectators, the media and members of the Olympic Family. Venues will be located in 4 clusters centered on city parks (3 existing parks and one created for the games), and all located in a 6-kilometer radius around the Olympic Village: Melbourne Park (where Melbourne Cricket Ground would serve as the main stadium), Albert Park, Royal Park, and the newly-built Olympic Park in Fishermans Bend (where the Olympic Village and the IBC/MPC will be located). Some venues will be located outside these clusters in the Melbourne region, as well as all over Australia (for Football preliminaries). The new Olympic Park, of approximately 90ha, would be part of a major urban regeneration project of over 250ha, planned over the next 35 years in the Fishermans Bend area. It aims to attract 40,000 jobs and 80,000 inhabitants. After the games, the Olympic Park will be the central point of this new district, and serve as a catalyst for its development. Most of the new facilities will be converted into housing, commercial or office space, cultural and sports venues for the community.
VENUES
Complete list of venues: Venue name
Capacity Events (Olympics) EXISTING VENUES, no permanent work required
Melbourne Cricket Ground Stadium Australia (Sydney) Docklands Stadium Lang Park (Brisbane) Melbourne Rectangular Stadium Princes Park Canberra Stadium (Canberra) Werribee Park National Equestrian Centre
100,000 84,000 53,359 52,500 30,050 27,000 25,000 15,000*
Rod Laver Arena
14,820
Melbourne Park Tennis Centre State Netball and Hockey Centre Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 4 Lakeside Stadium Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 1 Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 2 Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 3 Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre 5 Melbourne Showgrounds Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre - Outdoor Pool Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre - Sports Hall Melbourne International Shooting Centre Melbourne Gun Club State Mountain Bike Course
from 10,500 to 200
Ceremonies, Athletics
Events (Paralympics) Ceremonies, Athletics
Football (prelims.) Rugby Sevens, Football (finals.) Football (prelims.) Football (prelims.) Cricket Football (prelims.) Equestrian
Equestrian
Gymnastics (artistic, trampoline), Basketball (finals) Tennis
Wheelchair Basketball
10,000 and 5,000
Field Hockey
Football (5-a-side)
8,000* 7,500* 6,000* 5,541 5,000* 5,000* 5,000* 5,000* 5,000* 3,000* 3,000* 2,000*
Handball (prelims.), Judo
Goalball
Wheelchair Tennis
Lacrosse Boxing
Judo, Taekwondo
Weightlifiting
Powerlifting
Badminton, Gymnastics (rythmic)
Badminton
Table Tennis, Taekwondo
Table Tennis
Cycling (BMX) Swimming (water polo) Squash
Boccia
Shooting (rifle and pistol)
Shooting
Shooting (clay target) Cycling (mountain bike)
PLANNED VENUE, to be built regardless of the Games Perth Stadium (Perth)
60,000
Football (prelims.)
ADDITIONAL VENUES, permanent Olympic Swimming Centre
15,000*
Olympic Community Centre 1
15,000*
Olympic Community Centre 2
10,000*
Olympic Velodrome Victoria Rowing/Canoeing Centre - Flatwater Course Victoria Rowing/Canoeing Centre - Whitewater Course
5,000* 12,000* 8,000*
Swimming (swimming, synchronised diving) Volleyball
Swimming Volleyball (sitting)
Basketball (prelims.), Handball (finals) Cycling (track)
Wheelchair Rugby
Rowing, Canoeing (flatwater)
Rowing, Paracanoe
Cycling (track)
Canoeing (whitewater)
ADDITIONAL VENUES, temporary Royal Park Arena Albert Park Archery Fields Royal Botanic Gardens
16,000 5,000 1,500
Beach Volleyball Cycling (road)
Cycling (road)
St Kilda Beach
1,500
Paratriathlon
St Kilda Harbour
general admission only
Triathlon, Swimming (open water) Sailing
*includes temporary seating
Archery
CLIMATE Melbourne has an oceanic climate. We plan to hold the games during the first days of spring, during which the weather is rather mild, with almost no record of temperatures going into negatives. The weather would be similar to that experienced in Sydney in 2000, albeit a bit dryer. The average low temperature in September and October is of 8.7°C, while the average high is of 18.4°C. The average rainfall is of 62.1mm per month.
TRANSPORTATION Melbourne has two major airports, including one international, known as Melbourne Airport. It offers flights Asia, North America, Africa, and Europe, thanks to 30 airline carriers. It welcomed over 31 million passengers in 2013. To get around the city, Melbourne has an extensive road network, with the longest freeway network in Australia. But public transport is the main transit mode in our plan. Melbourne has the world’s largest tram network, with 245 kilometers of tracks over 28 routes. The city also has an important suburban rail network, with 16 lines, operated by Metro Trains Melbourne. The train network is planned to undergo major renovations and expansion in the following years. And all the improvements that would be made before the games are already planned. During the games, each major venue cluster would be located close to at least one train station. Melbourne also has a bike-sharing system and inter-city trains to Adelaide and Sydney.