FOR MEDIA SATURDAY, 24 JULY 1982
COM~' MONWEALTH GAMES CHEQUE HANDOVER
This is one of those happy functions, and it is the sort of
function that politicians dream about. You have a cheque
in your pocket all morning, & id hope you don't lose it, and
you know you are going to give it away to somebody at lunch
time. It is in a good cause, and the Commonwealth has been supporting
the Commonwealth Games quite strongly, and a few years ago
now, webegana the business of providing additional support
for the Commonwealth Games Federation or the Olympic Games
Federation so that there could be adequate free training for
the teams that were ultimately going to represent Australia.
This was a policy that was introduced to our own athletes,
a greater opportunity to compete on equal terms.
What I am here for today is to hand over the last cheque
to Mr Les Martyn. from the Commonwealth of $ 155,000 as the
final payment of about $ 455,000 for the pre-Games preparation"
and out-fitting of the Australian team.
Overall thE! Commonwealth contribution and of course, the
Queensland contribution has been substantial, very nearly
million. I toured the facilities with the Chairman
of the organising committee, Ned Williams, last week, and
the Games facilities I believe, are going to be as good as
any in the world. They have been constructed with the
highest possible standards, the new swimming pool is a
marvel for people who were used to the swimming pools of
older days. We are looking to see Commonwealth Games'
records broken and there will be over 40 countries represented.
It has all be played on a low-key basis up to this stage,
because there were talks of boycotts and all sorts of things,
which nobody really wanted to hear much about, but that was
resolved in a meeting in May and there will be a tremendous
representation at the Commonwealth Games in Brisbane.
it is also going to be the first significant test of the
AustralianL Institute of Sport Which has been operating now for
the best part of two years,. offering the most modern training
techniques. A combination of that with full knowledge and
experience, again sports medicine, of fering the latest techniLques
to Australian athletes in a significant number of sports
that will be relevant to the competitions in Queensland. ./ 2 V-
-2-
Australia probably realised too late that if we
are going to compete in international tournamrents and
international competitions whether it is the Commonwealth
Games or the Olympic Games, or other purely team sports on
a one-sport basis, then we are going to have to offer better
opportunities for training Australian athletes than we
had in earlier times. It was really out of discussions * with
some Australian athletes after the Montreal Games, I said:
" what is wrong, why aren't we doing as well as we have got
used to doing?" Australians had regarded that winning came
naturally to Australians and almost without rival. Then we
find that it is hard to win at Wimbledon or the Davis Cup,
it was hard the win at the Olympic Games, and harder to win
at the Commonwealth Games because other countries have been
giving much greater support and attention to their athletes,
than we have, with the opportunities for training of a most
intensive kind. If we were going to be in the business,
I think all Australians would want to be out -there winning,
out front, so that meant that we had to do more. The
pre-Games preparation at the Australian Institute of Sport
represents two different avenues of attack as far as the
Commonwealth is concerned in co-operation of Australian sports
men and women, to try and do something to get Australians
out front.
We are hoping that the Commonwealth Gamnes in EBrisbane-.
are going to be an Australian first, in more t: han one way,.
The Games are going to be held here and we are workin an. X
hoping, as I am sure our athletes are, to see that we ~ takp
out more gold medals and more victories than the athleves; fany
other country.
I am-sure that it is going to be a great event, and if les Martyn
will come forward I still have -ithe cheque Les,. I didn'It lose
it at the Liberal Party Conference this morning although
they might need it more than you.
Before handing over to Les, I would just like to wish all
good fortune to all those Australian athletes who will be
competing in Brisbane, for those who will be -training,
assisting and helping, to Les Martyn and his cohorts. It
is going to be a great event, I am going to shift the
Commonwealth Government to Brisbane for that particular
week. It is as far as I am concerned, I hope to see a good
deal of it. I believe it will be a happy occasion for
Australia and one of the most significant sporting events
which Australia has managed to mount.