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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-12-04 Daily Xml
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Lifesaving World Championships

Mr PATTERSON (Morphett) (15:37): You will recall that recently in parliament I moved a motion recognising that the Lifesaving World Championships 2018 were held from16 November to 2 December at Glenelg beach and the South Australia Aquatic and Leisure Centre. I wish to update the house on the exciting competition now that the championships have concluded.

This was the first time that these championships had returned to the same city. Whereas Rescue 2012 Adelaide showcased its fantastic location and pristine beach conditions, in 2018 Adelaide showcased the spirit of South Australia's people, who demonstrated teamwork and resilience in the face of unseasonal weather conditions. With over 7,000 registered participants, including 4,400 competing athletes from 45 nations, the Lifesaving World Championships 2018 has been the largest Lifesaving World Championships ever conducted.

The championships got underway on 16 November at the SA Aquatic and Leisure Centre with Masters events illustrating the skills of old surf lifesavers. Sunday 18November saw 800 nippers hold a junior carnival at Glenelg beach and get to experience the excitement of competing on the courses that the best lifesavers in the world would compete on in the weeks ahead. The beach sprints track was bordered by a temporary grandstand that was a fantastic viewing platform for spectators.

On Tuesday 20 November, teams from around the world congregated on Moseley Square, Glenelg, before marching to the Champs Hub on the Glenelg foreshore as part of the Parade of Nations and opening ceremony. The member for Gibson, the Minister for Tourism and I joined the crowd to witness the Premier officially open the championships and welcome the athletes to Adelaide. Little did we know that the next day the weather was not going to be so welcoming.

Wednesday saw me, along with fellow Masters competitors competing in the ocean and on the beach. Craig Burton, Steve and Tony Dalton from Glenelg won the Masters ski relay. I was fortunate enough to reach the semifinals of the beach sprints but kept out of the final by an Argentinian. While marshalling for the next event, the beach relay, the officials suddenly gave us five minutes to get off the beach to beat the incoming storm front. The ensuing 12 hours would cause havoc, with a king tide resulting in the grandstand footings being inundated and gale-force winds battering the canvas stands.

The next morning saw parts of the grandstand beyond repair. What yesterday had been a flat beach sprint track was now covered in seaweed carried in by the tide, but with the world's eyes upon Adelaide the strength of Surf Life Saving—its volunteers—came to the rescue. Led by President John Baker and Glenelg Surf Life Saving Club members, remediation work started at first light on Thursday morning. Along with Sacha Sewell and the Holdfast Bay council's support, the track was cleared and the grandstand structures repaired, except for the southernmost section, which was disassembled. By Friday, all ocean events were back on schedule.

Meanwhile, in the pool, competition continued unaffected. Adam Luscombe took me on a tour of the pool events and gave me an opportunity to go below the pool deck to see some of the events through one of the underwater viewing windows, before presenting medals for some of the team events. By the end of the championships, over 35 world records were broken in the pool across all disciplines and the open international competition saw Australia and New Zealand tied in the lead on equal points.

The team events then moved to Glenelg beach, which saw the competition remain tight, with Australia just shading New Zealand by 20 points and France finishing third. In the interclub competition, Northcliffe won the championships by 10 points from Currumbin. The event ran with significant support from Events SA. The event's media reached in excess of seven million people in Australia and live streaming on YouTube reached 50,000 viewers around the world. The live stream was interspersed with advertising promoting South Australian locations, such as Kangaroo Island. Local accommodation was near capacity and Jetty Road traders' feedback has been positive.

It was a memorable two weeks at Glenelg. Congratulations and a thankyou to all the athletes and officials, Surf Life Saving SA staff and the army of volunteers who built and then rebuilt these championships. As an example, Glenelg Surf Life Saving Club members, led by Pete Tidswell's local work party, clocked up 3,800 volunteer hours. Everyone should be rightly proud of what they delivered and how the Lifesaving World Championships showcased South Australia to the world.

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