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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2019-02-26 Daily Xml
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Superloop Adelaide 500

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (14:50): My question is to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Can the minister update the chamber on some of the exciting new events and activities at the Superloop 500?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) (14:50): I thank the honourable member for his ongoing interest in motorsport. He is fortunate enough to have been in this place with me for some 17 years now, and I think he has been excited every 17 years.

There is no doubt that the excitement is building across Adelaide as the people of South Australia welcome thousands of visitors into our state for the start of the Virgin Australia Supercars season. Four days of on-track racing, including twilight racing, Thursday to Saturday, will see the supercars on track for the first time on Thursday at twilight for a practice session.

Of course, we have the City of Adelaide Family Zone, including a giant waterslide, super soakers, race simulations, a pit stop challenge and a kids' day on Saturday, with driver signings and opportunities to play their favourite sports with interactive games—and I think, given the temperature, the giant waterslide and the super soakers will be pretty popular. There is also the introduction of the Tracks of the World, a new precinct showing cars—more than $30 million of them—and food and culture from five of the sport's most famous tracks, including Le Mans, Nürburgring, Indianapolis, Monaco and, of course, Adelaide. There you will see a fountain, a Ferris wheel, a beer hall, Formula One and NASCARs and so much more.

There will be a fresh, new layout to enhance the fan experience and encourage people to explore, and we encourage them to do that. A new concert location in front of the heritage grandstand brings together the adrenaline-filled racing and electric concert atmosphere in one conveniently positioned location. Of course, we have rock royalty in town with a sensational concert line-up: Jet and Living End on Saturday night; Vance Joy and Amy Shark on Friday night, all supported by local South Australian bands; and on Sunday night the Red Hot Chili Peppers, also supported by local South Australian bands.

We are very excited this year to have Superloop on board as the naming rights sponsor, and we are really looking forward to them partnering for their very first event. The new Superloop Adelaide 500 logo represents a new look and a new feel for the event. Superloop has a strong local footprint in Adelaide and, with exciting plans for future expansion, it is a fantastic partnership.

We have also had a great response to the events and program, with ticket sales up 3 per cent on this time last year. Sunday general admission and grandstand tickets are now back on sale, after the original allocation was exhausted. There are also four-day general admission and grandstand tickets available. I might just add, in relation to them being exhausted, with the move of the concert to in front of the Victoria Park grandstand the SATC, when the allocation was sold, wanted to do a bit more due diligence, and they are now comfortable they can fit an even bigger crowd in and have put those tickets back on sale.

Of course, in this modern, digital world it is interesting to note that the website sessions are up 5.3 per cent on the same point last year—some 350,000 website sessions. Website page views are up 18.94 per cent on the same time last year, and that is in excess of one million page views. The Superloop Adelaide 500 social media committee is now over 100,000 fans strong.

Research conducted by Economic Research Consultants found that the 2018 event delivered an economic boost of some $41.9 million to the South Australian economy, creating over 400 full-time equivalent jobs for the year, and I have seen some very positive industry feedback on hotel occupancy and pricing over the event period, with exceptionally—I repeat, exceptionally—strong demand especially for Sunday sales. There are some hotels saying it is the best they have ever experienced. All indications are it will be a great event and another wonderful experience for South Australians and our many, many visitors who enjoy our great state.

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