Chch starts on road to Games

Press, 13 April 1989, Page 7

Chch starts on road to Games

Christchurch took its first official steps towards securing the 1996 Olympic Games yesterday with the appointment of a feasibility study committee.

The committee includes the Canterbury United Council chairman, Mrs Margaret Murray, and the Mayor of Christchurch, Sir Hamish Hay. The committee, which will look into the pros and cons of staging the world’s biggest sporting event in Christchurch, was formed after the United Council was addressed by Mr Bruce Ullrich, the man behind the city’s bid for the Games.

mendous rub-off for the city in tourist revenue and it would stimulate commercial activity. Mr Ullrich’s only concern was that accommodation might not be sufficient to cater for at least 25,000 competitors, officials and media personnel that would converge on the city. On top of that, there would be thousands of Games spectators in Christchurch. But he believed two cruise ships in Lyttelton Harbour would house the media, while competitors could be housed in university hostels and at Wigram Air Base. Apart from Queen Elizabeth II Park possible venues for the sports were Hagley Park, Addington Raceway, Pioneer and Cowles stadiums, Porritt and Wilding Parks, the Theatre Royal and Denton Oval.

Mr Ullrich said two new indoor sports arenas would be needed, and Queen Elizabeth II Park would have to be enlarged to seat about 60,000 spectators. The Rangitata River would be the venue for white-water canoeing and Lake Ruataniwha for rowing and flat-water canoeing. Mr Ullrich said Auckland could be given the sailing events. He said Christchurch had shown — with the Commonwealth Games — it could “beat the giants” in organising big sporting events. Television rights for the Games would recoup about half the expected $5OO million cost of staging them. Mr Ullrich said the Government would be asked to contribute substantially.

He urged councillors to begin efforts to get the Games in Christchurch. He said the International Olympic Committee had said there was nothing stopping the city staging the event. Because New Zealand was a “major power” in water and equestrian sports, it had an added incentive to stage the Olympics. It also had a better gold-medal record in the Games than Aus-

tralia, Mr Ullrich said. Christchurch had a proud record in staging large sporting events, including the 1974 Commonwealth Games, the World Veteran Games and the World Deaf Games, in January this year. There would be a tre-