Brisbane leads race to host 2032 Olympics
Brisbane has emerged as the frontrunner to host the 2032 Olympic Games.
The Australian city was named as the preferred partner by the IOC president during a press conference in Switzerland on Wednesday.
The designation means talks will begin between Brisbane and the organisers of the games, before a final vote sometime this year.
Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk:
"We are very excited by this development. It puts Queensland in the box seat and I know that every level of government is absolutely united in working together to make this happen."
Budapest, Indonesia, China, and Doha, had all expressed interest in hosting the event.
But Brisbane stood out, with its high number of existing venues, experience in organising major events and favourable weather.
The Head of the Future Host Commission, Kristin Kloster Aasen, said Brisbane had a good legacy and venue plan.
In 2019, the IOC overhauled its bidding rules to reduce costs and make the application process easier for cities.
There are now no official candidate cities campaigning ahead of the IOC's vote.
Should Brisbane go ahead as the host city, it will become the third Australian city to host the Summer Games after Melbourne in 1956 and Sydney in 2000.
