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Ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Australia’s peak aquatic sports - Swimming Australia, Diving Australia, Water Polo Australia and Artistic Swimming Australia - have renewed calls to build a National Aquatics Centre (NAC) at Victoria Park in Brisbane as a legacy venue.

The call follows Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday reaffirming the Federal Government's funding commitment to the planned Brisbane Arena/Live development, which has previously been suggested as a temporary venue for aquatic sport during Brisbane 2032 before reverting to an entertainment venue after the Games.

Brisbane newspaper The Courier-Mail yesterday quoted Federal Sport Minister Anika Wells as suggesting that the Brisbane Arena would be used for the Olympic swimming competition.

However, the peak aquatic sports note “none of the other venues publicly canvassed as options to host swimming in 2032 meet the long-term requirements of the community and Australia’s four aquatic sports including swimming, Australia’s most successful Olympic and Paralympic sport.

“Proposed drop-in pool solutions - be it the Arena or at Suncorp Stadium - will leave zero aquatics legacy for the people of Brisbane and Queensland and for the four aquatic sports; and additionally the Gold Coast Aquatic Centre would need two indoor 50metre pools with an enclosed roof to even be considered fit for purpose for the Games and events in winter.”

Upgrades planned for the Brisbane Aquatic Centre at Chandler, which will be more than 50 years old and nearing the end of its operational life by the Olympic and Paralympic year of 2032, are considered by the peak aquatic sports to be insufficient to address current challenges or deliver legacy benefits.

The four peak aquatic sports have been transparent about the plan for a national hub to be built alongside the existing Centenary pool complex.

They are calling for “a complex that will feature three new pools, two new dive towers and modern amenities as a new national home for Australia’s aquatic sports as well as a thriving community hub that will drive economic, health and social benefits for decades beyond the Games, and a lasting venue that is well under the $2.5 billion quoted for the Brisbane Arena project.”

The proposed main indoor pool would seat 19,350 spectators during the 2032 Games before reverting to at least 5850 in legacy mode while the second indoor pool would have 5000 seats before being scaled back to 2500 and the NAC precinct is close to public transport, walking distance to the Exhibition railway line and Brisbane Metro.

Additionally, the location of the NAC has the benefit of being within walking distance to Brisbane City and Spring Hill hotels and restaurants, the topography is well suited for construction and deck car parking that can be expanded to service the RNA Show and nearly Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and the Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service at Herston.

The NAC would unlock major event capability for all four aquatic sports as well as creating an environment for daily high-performance training and pathways development alongside community access for all ages and abilities.

The aquatic sports believe “It’s a plan that provides true legacy to the Brisbane and Queensland communities, honours and celebrates Australia’s lifelong love of aquatic sports and that would allow South-East Queensland to become a global water sports powerhouse.”

It is a long-term strategy that has been endorsed by the Australian Olympic Committee, Paralympics Australia and World Aquatics.

All four aquatic sports are in need of investment in a new permanent facility and the best-case scenario is the NAC.

In addition to the four peak aquatic bodies needing a central hub; the country’s 2103 plus public pools are buckling under the pressure of demand and ageing infrastructure.

New research from the Royal Life Saving Society Australia (RLSSA) – in their State of Aquatic Facility Infrastructure 2025 report - found:

• A need for better planning frameworks that account for geographic distribution and population growth projections
• 1 in 4 Australians have disadvantaged access to public pools
• There are 421 million visits to 2103 aquatic facilities each year
• The social value of aquatic facilities has increased to $12.84 billion per year, up from $9.1 billion in 2021.

Swimming Australia Chief Executive Rob Woodhouse notes “Swimming Australia has consistently advocated for legacy outcomes from the 2032 Games throughout this process.

"The Dolphins will always proudly represent Australia, but the legacy they deliver at the Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games will be lost immediately without an investment now in this critically needed aquatic infrastructure which the National Aquatics Centre will provide for 40-50 years beyond the Games.

"This is the greatest opportunity we have to deliver a true Olympic and Paralympic legacy – for the aquatic sports and the community - from the 2032 Games. If there is no investment in the NAC , it will be a missed opportunity to deliver an aquatics venue that Brisbane desperately needs.”

Diving Australia Chief Executive Alex Newton emphasised “a state-of-the art facility for diving, in the lead up to, during and post the Olympic Games, is essential for the sport to be able to achieve strong results on the international stage."

“Currently, we quite simply do not have enough diving venues in Australia that can accommodate our current squads and competitions, let alone allow us to leverage a home Olympic Games where our goals are to expand participation.

“All four aquatics sports are determined to advocate for a truly national facility that benefits the community as well as our respective high-performance programs well beyond the two week window of hosting an Olympic Games.”

 Water Polo Australia Chief Executive Tim Welsford advised “all aquatic sports have known for a long time that we need pools across Australia to cater for community needs, let alone our high performance and pathways programs.

“We want to create greater opportunity for the community, young and old, to enjoy the health benefits that aquatics sports and participation bring.  A National Aquatics Centre will do that.

“Water Polo Australia wants to provide our sport with the first ever national high-performance hub for our Aussie Sharks and Stingers, where we aren’t in competition with the community needs but rather have enough pool space for everyone to enjoy and maximise.

 “We can’t let this once in a generation opportunity of a home Olympics pass us by without building for the communities and sports beyond 2032.”

Artistic Swimming Australia Chair Mark Sinderberry added “this is a chance to address the current challenges and future needs of the community by developing a much needed and permanent facility that is a facility for all. One that is accessible and inviting to all individuals of all ages and all backgrounds – and it is world class.”

“The NAC is a venue that will leave a true legacy not just in bricks and mortar but in the hearts and minds of the community – and all aquatic athletes.”

SNAPSHOT:

• NAC has been developed with a permanent seating capacity of 8800 and up to 25,800 in 2032 Games mode with the addition of temporary seating infrastructure.
• In 2032, the main competition pool would have seating capacity of more than 19,000 – greater than the capacity of La Defense Arena used for the 2024 Paris Games.
• The NAC can host aquatic sports competition at the Brisbane 2032 Games but it is needed regardless of the Games to meet community need and to support the growth and development of aquatic sports in Queensland and Australia for the following decades.
• The NAC will unlock significant economic, health and social benefits for QLD over the decades beyond 2032. Economic health benefit: The national aquatic industry contributes $12.84 billion annually in combined economic, health and social benefits.

Images. National Aquatics Centre Renders Credit: Archilelago

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