AWAY from the hustle and bustle of the busy Brisbane streets - about 12 kilometres south of the city centre - Queensland Sports Athletics Centre is a sprawling sporting locality. Situated at the junction of Kessler Road and Mains Road, the sporting complex is home to the State Athletics Facility, Nissan Arena, High Performance Facilities, Sandstorm Beach Volleyball Club and the main QSAC stadium. The centre is vibrant and buzzing with activity.
Built for the 1982 Commonwealth Games, the main stadium has since hosted several historic events - sporting and non-sporting - in the last four decades. As recently as the first week of December, the venue was witness to the record run Gout Gout had at the Australian All Schools Athletics Championships. The Ipswich-Brisbane-born teen sensation ran 200m in 20.04s to break Australia's oldest athletics record set by Peter Norman in 1968.
Currently the fastest in the world for 200m in U-18 and U-20 levels, Gout grew up at the QSAC facility. It is where, much like every aspiring athlete in Brisbane, he would turn up every day and train from a very young age. The same facility, with a capacity of about 48,000, is the home of Matthew Denny, the Paris Olympics bronze medallist in discuss throw, who comes in and trains here almost every day.
In fact, of the 53 medals Australia won in the Paris Olympics, QSAC, Queensland Academy of Sport and the state itself cumulatively contributed to more than half of them (28). It is no wonder that there is an inimitable buzz in the air about the state and Brisbane getting to host the Summer Games eight years down the line in 2032.
At the same time, though steeped in history and heritage, QSAC, The Gabba, and all other sporting venues are yet to have a clarity on what kind of a role they are going to play in the 2032 Olympics.
This story is from the December 22, 2024 edition of The New Indian Express.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the December 22, 2024 edition of The New Indian Express.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Crawford Wins Singles Championship
OLIVER Crawford from Great Britain and 23-year-old Eric Vanshelboim of Ukraine treated the 300-plus spectators who turned up at the SDAT Tennis Stadium to two hours and forty-three minutes of exhilarating tennis in the final of the BR Adityan ITF M25 Men's International Tennis Championships.
David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham Join Supergirl
Emily Beecham, who was last seen in the Netflix series 1899 and Oppenheimer-fame David Krumholtz, have joined the cast of Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. They will portray Supergirl's parents.
SPECULATIVE FICTION'S BIG, BOLD STATEMENT
On a crisp January evening, the free community library at Masoodpur in South Extension transformed into a portal of another dimension. Writers, students, artists, and curious young minds gathered to witness the launch of The Blaft Book of Anti-Caste Speculative Fiction.
IIT-M director praises 'gomutra', gets a stinker
IIT Madras director V Kamakoti is facing severe flak for endorsing 'gomutra' (cow urine) for its \"medicinal value\" and its alleged ability to cure conditions like irritable bowel syndrome and fever.
INDIAN OPTIMISM AWAITING A TRUMPIAN ORDER
We are dealing with a superpower seeking to reconcile multiple interests in a challenging global environment. Convergence of interests does not translate to a congruence of actions
Suspected Hooch Claims Six Lives in 'Dry' Bihar
At least six people died allegedly after consuming spurious liquor in Bihar's West Champaran district during 36 hours on Sunday.
Rain sinks 50K ha of samba in coastal delta
FARMERS in the coastal delta region are worried as sudden, unseasonal rainfall in Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai districts and Puducherry's Karaikal in the past two days has left their harvest-ready samba paddy under water.
'It Is rare to see genuine criticism for a film these days'
Director Vishnu Varadhan and debut actor Akash Murali talk about Nesippaya, nepotism, their definition of romance, and more
AIR to help mitigate man-animal conflicts in MP
COUNTRY'S public radio broadcaster, the All India Radio (AIR-Akashvani) has a new role to play in Madhya Pradesh - alerting people about movement of wild animals, including elephants, tigers and leopards to prevent human-animal conflicts and related casualties.
Gunfight breaks out in Baramulla, first this year
A gunfight between security forces and terrorists broke out on Sunday in Sopore area of Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district, the first encounter this year.
