Subjects: The Olympic Games
E&OE..................
Well thank you very much Tony. To Sir Donald and Lady Trescowthick, to Steve Bracks and Terrie Bracks, to John and Julie Olsen, John and Pauline Coates, to Michael Knight and Mrs Knight, to Jeff Kennett the President of the Organising Committee, to all the other distinguished guests. And most importantly, can I say, all past and present Olympic representatives of our great nation.
When I became Prime Minister Janette said one of the things you';ll have to do is a little bit of entertaining - I';ve got to say this is the biggest yet. And there';s something marvellously symbolic that here we should be in the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne. A wonderful building. Indelibly part of the history of this country. The place of the inauguration of the first National Parliament, the place to which many of us will return on the 9th of May next year to commemorate that event. And here we are, back in Melbourne, the first Australian city to host the Olympic Games. The home city and providing the school to which our only representative in 1896, Edwin Flack, who won a gold medal. So there is great symbolism about this event in this building.
I want very sincerely to say to the corporate community, particularly of Melbourne, how magnificently generous you have again been in a great national cause. Can I say that the business community of Melbourne does these things better than any other part of our country and I am profoundly grateful for your generosity.
We are, as everybody knows, great lovers of sport and what';s unfolding now is really, in every sense of the expression, a dream come true. Because over the last couple of years this nation arguably has had its greatest sporting successes on the international stage ever. In cricket, in rugby union, in tennis, in rugby league, in women';s golf, netball, the list goes on endlessly. And all of it is, in a sense, but a great national preparation for the event that will begin in Sydney in a few days time.
I was in Brisbane last night and this morning, and here in Melbourne I can find, indeed all around the country, a tremendous sense of enthusiasm. And that sense of connection between our nation and our sporting men and women is always with us.
At two o';clock tomorrow morning I know many of you will be up wishing Lleyton Hewitt the very best of success in his semi-final against Pete Sampras. And to meet, as Janette and I had the privilege of doing, that wonderfully enthusiastic young man in New York three nights ago with his parents and his girlfriend, to see his great enthusiasm to do great things for his country was just another reminder of what the men and women who represent this country in sport have done for us.
Can I join Donald Trescowthick in congratulating Michael Knight and the other members of the Organising Committee for the tremendous work that they have done in getting Sydney ready. The facilities are superb and what will happen there will do, not just Sydney, but importantly the entire nation proud. And what will be on display is the openness, the tolerance, the friendliness and the warmth, and the great decency of all of the Australian people.
I want, on behalf of the nation, to wish our 627 Olympic competitors, the largest team that we have ever assembled. I want to wish every one of them the greatest of success. I know the hopes and the feelings and the support and the passion of the 19 million sports loving Australians will go with them. It will be our greatest sporting event ever. It will be a great world event. It will do great credit to our nation and the support that you are demonstrating tonight will deliver a great deal of that reality.
I wish our Olympians well. I thank the people of Melbourne for this wonderful occasion. Donald, I congratulate you and your Organising Committee on the work you have done and I hope all of us have, as I know we will, a wonderful night.
Thank you.