Commonwealth Games to put the Gold Coast on the global tourism map

Published on : Sunday, April 1, 2018

Increased exposure of the Gold Coast, Queensland and Australia to the world will be the enduring legacy of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, a new nation-wide survey by pollster Nielsen has found.

The poll, commissioned by the Tourism & Transport Forum Australia (TTF), found that Australians believe the biggest long-term benefit of the Games will be the promotion of the Gold Coast on the global stage (40 per cent), beating out improved infrastructure and services (22 per cent) and additional jobs and economic growth (14 per cent).

The survey also found that when asked whether the 2018 Commonwealth Games will help promote Australia to the world, 71 per cent said yes, 11 per cent said no and 18 per cent were not sure.

“For the next month, the Gold Coast will be the epicentre of global sport with the eyes of the world on the Commonwealth Games,” TTF Chief Executive Margy Osmond said.

“With an anticipated audience of more than 1.5 billion people, it is easy to see why so many people believe the legacy of the 2018 Commonwealth Games will be the global exposure of the Gold Coast as it hosts one of the world’s biggest sporting events and tourism drawcards.

“The long-term benefits of having the incredible beauty of the Gold Coast and South-East Queensland beamed into living rooms across the world every day in terms of the potential for increased visitation cannot be underestimated.

“The Commonwealth Games will well and truly put the Gold Coast on the global tourism map.”

Ms Osmond said that when it comes to what events Aussies are most looking forward to watching, the traditional blue ribbon sports of swimming and athletics are top of the list.

“When asked what top three events people are most keen to watch, our poll found that swimming was a clear favourite with 70 per cent of respondents putting it on their list, followed by athletics (54 per cent) and gymnastics (40 per cent),” Ms Osmond said.

“There is also quite a bit of interest in a range of other sports, with many looking forward to the diving (31 per cent), rugby sevens (19 per cent) and basketball (19 per cent).”

What do you think the legacy of the 2018 Commonwealth Games will be?     Male Female National NSW +ACT QLD SA VIC WA TAS Improved infrastructure and services 26 18 22% 21% 27% 11% 20% 26% 7% Increased exposure of the Gold Coast on the global stage 38 42 40 43 42 45 35 33 57 Additional jobs and economic growth 9 19 14 14 8 17 17 19 7 I don’t believe there will be a legacy 27 21 24 23 22 28 28 21 29   What events are you most looking forward to watching at the 2018 Commonwealth Games?     Male Female National NSW +ACT QLD SA VIC WA TAS Athletics 58% 50% 54% 56% 44% 54% 59% 58% 42% Swimming 63 75 70 69 68 68 76 65 50 Cycling – Road 19 8 13 15 13 14 12 13 8 Cycling – Track 22 12 16 20 12 13 18 18 0 Hockey 14 7 11 11 11 17 6 14 8 Netball 12 15 13 13 14 19 12 14 8 Basketball 25 13 19 18 14 24 23 15 33 Triathlon 12 10 11 14 11 8 7 12 8 Weightlifting 18 9 14 9 20 18 12 20 0 Rugby Sevens 29 9 19 24 25 13 12 13 8 Gymnastics 18 61 40 36 42 48 46 39 17 Diving 19 43 31 27 36 26 34 36 25   Do you think the 2018 Commonwealth Games will help promote Australia to the world?     Male Female National NSW +ACT QLD SA VIC WA TAS Yes 67% 74% 71% 71% 67% 74% 68% 77% 79% No 16 7 11 11 15 12 9 11 7 Not Sure 18 19 18 18 18 14 22 12 14

Tags: Australia, Gold Coast, queensland