Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Bill

Debate resumed from an earlier hour.

The Hon. PATRICIA FORSYTHE [2.31 p.m.]: As I said earlier, the Opposition supports the bill. We look forward to the World Masters Games being held in Sydney in 2009. We look forward to the opportunity, as the Government of New South Wales in 2009, of ensuring the appropriate delivery of what no doubt will be the world's best World Masters Games. The World Masters Games are of particular interest to some members of the Opposition, including my colleague the Hon. Robyn Parker, who will also participate in the debate. I acknowledge the efforts of the bid committee in securing the seventh World Masters Games in 2009 for Sydney by presenting a better case than its bid competitors, the Shiga Prefecture, in Japan, and Copenhagen, Denmark. The Coalition is delighted that Sydney was selected.

The World Masters Games are different from the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games because they are not about elite sportspeople, per se. There are no qualifying contests and very few minimum standards. As participants must have reached a certain age, these games attract many former elite athletes and the competitions are of significantly high standard. The next World Masters Games will be held in Edmonton in Alberta, Canada, from 22 to 31 July this year. The World Masters Games web site is listed under the heading "The largest sports festival on earth". The Sydney 2009 World Masters Games will be an event of great significance, in that once again Sydney will be the focus of world attention.

Unlike with other sporting events, the expected 30,000 participants in the World Masters Games will, presumably, have money and resources to meet competition expenses that young competitors struggle to find. The games are expected to make a significant contribution to Sydney's economy. The Edmonton World Masters Games are expected to attract 21,000 athletes including 1,000 competitors in 27 sports categories and 2,000 companions, coaches or managers. Participation in the World Masters Games is open to a significantly wide range of ages, but the minimum age is 30 to 35 years. During my preparation for this debate, I took the opportunity to contact my brother, John Wingrove, who has competed in a number of Pan Pacific Masters Games and Australian Masters Games. I do not often give my brother a plug, but I do not think he will mind my mentioning in Hansard that he is in his sixties—63 in fact—and is still competing in world standard games, he is well known in baseball circles as a former country representative and State competitor.

My brother has participated in a number of Masters Games, including the Central Australian Masters Games, in which he won five medals—two gold, one silver and one bronze—as a player or coach. He won a silver medal at the Pan Pacific Games and attended the Australian Masters Games in Newcastle and Canberra as a player and coach. In 2004, as the oldest competitor in the baseball section and an invitation player with a local Gold Coast team, he won his team's batting trophy. He generally plays in the over 35 age group, but in Adelaide he was playing in the over 40 category. He has been invited to play for Australia in the over 60 age group in the baseball category at the Masters Games in Phoenix Arizona, but given that the those Games will be conducted in temperatures above 42 degrees Celsius, he may not attend.

I mention my brother's experiences because they illustrate what the World Masters Games are all about—competing as an individual at elite sporting levels, albeit not representing one's country per se, and participating in events that have no minimum standard qualifying contests. Some of Australia's great sporting competitors, such as Dawn Fraser, have contributed significantly to sport through participation in the Masters Games. If the Government wants to impress upon people of all ages the importance of fitness and participation, there can be no better way to get that message across than by promoting the World Masters Games in Sydney.

Two significant aspects of the bill should be noted during this debate. The organising committee will be dissolved on 30 June 2010 by virtue of the sunset provisions of the bill. Consequently there will be a transfer of the committee's assets, rights and liabilities to the State Government on that date. The Government intends to provide the organising committee with a significant budget, but the games are expected to recover the costs incurred by the State of New South Wales in hosting the events. Clause 36 (1) prohibits a person from disclosing information known to them that is not widely known. From my experience as a member of a committee that inquired into ticketing associated with the Sydney Olympic Games, I well understand the way in which information associated with ticketing or sponsorship may be misused in a manner akin to insider trading. The bill makes it clear that a person who engages in that type of conduct will commit an offence that attracts a maximum penalty of 50 penalty units.

The Opposition believes that the bill is appropriate, and the Opposition supports the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games. We congratulate the organising committee on its successful bid to host the 2009 World Masters Games in Sydney. We look forward to Sydney again being showcased to the world as a centre of outstanding sporting facilities and as a good place to visit. The Sydney 2009 World Masters Games will present another opportunity to use facilities that were constructed when Sydney hosted the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. All things considered, the 2009 World Masters Games will be a win-win for Sydney and New South Wales. The Opposition supports the legislation.

Mr IAN COHEN [2.40 p.m.]: On behalf of the Greens I support the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Bill. However, it is a shame that the word "Masters" is used in the title. As a fair percentage of the athletes at the Games will be women, I suggest it would have been more appropriate for the words "Mature Elite" to appear in the title. As an earlier speaker said, it is appropriate that we recognise the fantastic contributions of a significant number of outstanding athletes from Australia, including Betty Cuthbert and Dawn Fraser. This House should come up with a title that is more fitting and inclusive of those who will participate in the games.

The bill establishes an organising committee for the 2009 World Masters Games—for want of a better title—to be hosted by Sydney in October 2009. It is wonderful that such open and inclusive games are coming to Sydney—that is, open to virtually anyone, with no qualification or selection criteria. Participants do not compete for their country, but as individuals. Such equity of access is to be applauded. The only requirement is a minimum age, for most events, of between 30 and 35. Most elite sports competitions are for athletes in the under-30 age group, so it is great that these games encourage participation from people in older age groups. Much emphasis is placed on elite athletes but the trickle-down effect of Australia's sporting achievements on the national and international stage has not extended to the remainder of society in the form of increased participation in physical activities and associated physical and mental health benefits.

Let us hope that the games will encourage participation by the general public, especially those not-so-young who may lean towards being couch potatoes. I hope also that such participation will be supported by the Government. Previous World Masters Games have been held in Brisbane, in 1994, and in Melbourne, in 2002, each event attracting about 25,000 participants. It is expected that approximately 30,000 people will participate in Sydney, and the games will attract about 12,000 visitors from overseas and 10,000 from interstate. This will be a significant boon for the tourist industry across a wide spectrum, from backpacker premises to the five-star end of town. However, with such an influx of people, we must be mindful of the environmental impacts of the Games. Just as happened during the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympics and the Gay Games, Sydney's population will increase by tens of thousands, and this will significantly impact on the city's public transport services, its water and energy consumption, and its waste creation.

The Hon. Robyn Parker: The trains might be on time for once.

Mr IAN COHEN: I acknowledge the interjection that the trains may be on time. That would certainly be a welcome benefit. The transport departments made great efforts during the Olympic Games, during which trains were not only on time but also working to capacity to deliver people to and from the Games. Host cities for such major sporting events should commit themselves to environmental and social impact assessment, with community participation in the planning process. Let us hope that once the committee and administrative procedures are established there will be an opportunity to ensure an environmental legacy of which we can be proud. Perhaps the Masters Games will carry forward the environmental messages and actions that characterised the Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games. I regularly participate in a two-kilometre swim with a group from my home town. We hold a competition once a year.

The Hon. Rick Colless: What about the grey nurse sharks.

Mr IAN COHEN: We swim where grey nurse sharks are often seen. I have seen a few of them. It is a wonderful swim across the bay to Byron—the Hon. Rick Colless should try it. Our final swimming event for the summer is the Watego 2.5-kilometre open ocean swim. It invites intense competition, as does the Cole Classic swim, which attracts the very young and the very old. People in their eighties complete the course, and those who finish late get a clap and a cheer for having participated. The event is more than competition between people; it is about proving to oneself that one can compete, and in good time. The swimming events are very enjoyable. They are quintessentially Australian events in which everyone encourages one another, young and old, the super fit and those not so fit who are testing themselves over the arduous course.

I have competed in a significant number of those events. It is an uplifting experience to be out in the water, swimming together with thousands of other swimmers. Photographs depicting the Cole Classic, and that great Australian sport, are on exhibition at the nearby State Library. I am confident that the World Masters Games would be a similar great experience for the Australian community and will set an example for young and old. The term "elite athlete" is not restricted to people in their teens and early twenties. Swimmers can compete in major events well into their sixties, seventies and, sometimes, eighties. I commend the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Bill but hope it will be renamed the Sydney 2009 World Mature Elite Games Organising Committee Bill, or something similar, to acknowledge our great women athletes.

The Hon. Dr ARTHUR CHESTERFIELD-EVANS [2.46p.m.]: It is wonderful that Sydney has won the bid to conduct these games, and this is a critical time for us. I will not repeat the comments of other members who have spoken about organising the games and the nature of the competition. The bill deals with the creation and dismantling of the administrative machinery for the games and, as such, is welcome. A number of people, myself included, hope to compete in those games.

The Hon. Melinda Pavey: What will you be doing?

The Hon. Dr ARTHUR CHESTERFIELD-EVANS: I will be running. It is important that the Government promotes health. Australians are now the second most overweight and obese people in the world, and we are experiencing an increase in the incidence of diabetes, which is weight related, and high blood pressure, which is also weight related. People who exercise tend to use less alcohol, tobacco and other drugs. There is an immense positive health benefit from exercise. Tobacco use is the greatest preventable cause of death and the greatest public health problem of our time, to quote the Surgeon General of the United States of America. Diabetes and obesity are looming epidemics because of lack of exercise resulting from increased use of technology and the encouragement of consumerism. It is very important that the Government tackle this problem.

The World Masters Games and the excitement associated with them could be very much channelled into a major health promotion initiative for the State Government, which does not do very much, not even at a parliamentary level. I have asked for health promotion programs for the staff of Parliament House and, as yet, that request has fallen on deaf ears. I will have to take up the cudgels for a little longer on that. I have some experience in these matters. In my time at Sydney Water I instituted a health promotion program. Of course, retirement on the grounds of age is no longer mandatory under the anti-discrimination laws; one cannot be forced to retire at the age of 65. On that basis, I established the criteria of fitness. Systematic fitness testing was put into place with a protocol that I worked out with Professor John Brotherhood, who was with the University of Sydney at that time. I believe that resulted in a few voluntary, but no compulsory, retirements. There was a real change in culture at Sydney Water, a considerable drop in the rate of smoking and alcohol consumption, and a large increase in the number of people exercising. Contrast that with the fact that we do not have anything like that here.

After the unfortunate train accident at Waterfall and the suggestion that the train driver had suffered from a medical problem, all train drivers were subjected to a fitness test, which resulted in a large number of retirements, a shortage of drivers and a disturbance to train timetables. That amply demonstrates the fact that the Government is not thinking ahead about the fitness of its work force. That needs to be pointed out in a forum such as this. I remember conducting fitness tests in one of the depots in eastern Sydney. An extremely overweight and heavy smoker who was high up in the hierarchy was at first dismissive of my suggestions, but in a weaker moment he said he would really like to stop smoking and get his weight down to a reasonable level. He was at least 40 kilograms overweight.

I said, "I will see whether I can get a Rolls-Royce service for you." I rang up St Vincent's Hospital and said, "Do you run a quit-smoking program to assist someone who is likely to suffer a heart attack?" The hospital staff said, "Yes, of course. Which ward is he in?" I said, "He is not yet in any ward, but he soon will be." The hospital staff said, "Is he not yet in hospital? Which hospital are you sending him to?" I said, "I am not sending him to hospital as he has not yet had a heart attack." I then said, "Does he have to have a heart attack and survive that attack before he can come to you?" The hospital staff said in a serious tone, "Yes, that is our criteria for admission." They did not realise I was taking the micky out of the system.

It is absurd that we have to wait until people are either dead or in an intensive care unit before we are able to obtain help for them. At an overall level in society we need to address the notion of the maintenance of fitness and we need a role model for that. I believe these Games would provide such an impetus. The Government should run a campaign in conjunction with the Games and encourage more people to compete. I hope I will be able to compete in the Games. I now fit the definition of what is known as a fast runner in the Corporate Cup, a six-kilometre run around the Domain. For the benefit of those honourable members who might not be aware of this fact, anyone over the age of 50 has to go in the 26-minute race. Yesterday I was chuffed to find that I broke the record for the 26 minutes for the first time since 2001, so progress has been made. I hope other honourable members are able to join me in running around the Domain in preparation for the World Masters Games. We must keep pressure on the Government to establish a health promotion program in the lead-up to these Games and beyond.

The Hon. ROBYN PARKER [2.52 p.m.]: I support the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Bill. These Games will provide a great opportunity for many athletes in Sydney. I am reminded of a word that was often used by a former member, the Hon. Michael Egan, in relation to Sydney. These Games are a great opportunity to "showcase" Sydney. As I come from the Hunter region I believe the Games will result in great benefits and spin-offs for many regional tourist areas. One advantage of games such as this is that competitors, support teams and family members take the opportunity to explore areas outside the Sydney metropolitan area. When my family attended the World Masters Games in Melbourne we took the opportunity to visit some of the tourist locations around Victoria and many people from other countries did the same thing.

In essence, the World Masters Games embody attitudes to sport that we should all have, encourage and foster—participation in and competition with the right sort of spirit. I have attended a number of Masters Games at different venues around Australia and that is a common theme. Whatever the sport, wherever the location is and whoever the participants are, there is a shared camaraderie and willingness to co-operate. One often sees athletes coaching one other. That spirit of competition is often absent in other sports. It is an uplifting experience to watch any Masters Games and to see people having a go. It is appropriate that these Games should be held in Australia because having a go is part of our cultural ethic. People at whatever age and whatever level have a go and they try very hard.

Other honourable members have said that elite athletes, former Olympians and Commonwealth Games participants are still participating in these Games but there is no entry criteria, although some sports have distance, time or weight requirements. This is an opportunity for us to relive the spirit created during the Sydney Olympic Games. It is an opportunity for everyone to become involved in this great event. No doubt the committee being set up to establish the Masters Games will have plenty of volunteers—one of the most wonderful spin-offs from the Olympic Games. I said earlier that I have attended a number of Masters Games around Australia—the Trans Tasman Masters Games, the Pan Pacific Masters Games, the Australian Masters Games, and the World Masters Games.

Other Masters Games competitions exist around the world. On several occasions the Hunter region has hosted the Trans Tasman Masters Games and the New South Wales Masters Games, so it is actively participating in these Games. I have attended these Masters Games to support my husband, who has actively participated in a sport that he took up only a few years ago. His sporting career is quite significant. He was the recipient of the Australian sports medal because of his contribution to sport as a former A-grade cricket player and President's Cup rugby league player. He is also under contract to play rugby league for North Sydney. He also holds an Australian boxing title. He later went on to specialise in sports medicine and was the first doctor for the Newcastle Knights.

His contribution to sport has been wide and varied and he is extensively involved in campaigns against drugs in sport. He competed in and came third in a body building competition in New South Wales against other competitors who were using drugs. As I said, my husband is actively campaigning against drugs. I was happy to see his contribution to sport acknowledged by the awarding of the Australian sports medal. Four years ago he took up athletics throwing events and competed for the first time in the New South Wales Masters Games. He won three gold medals in the three events in which he competed—shot-put, discus and javelin. His next competition was the Australian Masters Games where he won a gold medal in shot-put, discus, javelin, the weight pentathlon and the hammer throw.

He then competed in the 50-year-old age group in the Trans Tasman Games, where he won five gold medals and set new records. This was all in the space of a couple of years. At the World Games in Melbourne he won a bronze medal in the shot-put and the weight pentathlon, quite a gruelling series of five events. There are a total of 3,000 points to be won in the shot-put, discus javelin, hammer throw and weight. He was six points off winning the gold medal. Come 2009 I am sure that goal will be within his grasp. He has competed against people from all over the world—former Olympians from Canada and India and successful and professional people who have continued their sports and generated sufficient income to be able to put money back into our economy. At the last Pan Pacific Masters Games my husband won four gold medals and two silver medals, and set further records. At the recent Trans Tasman Masters Games he took up the new event of bench pressing and won another gold medal and came close to setting a record. He also won gold medals in all the throwing events he entered.

We are looking forward to the World Masters Games in Sydney in 2009. The Games are most inspiring. I have seen 90-year-olds pole vaulting and older athletes coming together in a spirit of competitiveness. I wholeheartedly support the bill and the creation of the organising committee. I will enjoy seeing the World Masters Games come to Sydney in 2009.

Reverend the Hon. Dr GORDON MOYES [3.00 p.m.]: I congratulate the Hon. Robyn Parker's husband on his outstanding achievements at Masters Games. The objective of the bill is to set up the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee as a statutory authority to plan and deliver the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games in accordance with the obligations imposed and rights conferred under the host city contract. The bill also provides for the committee's dissolution and the repeal of the subsequent Act in 2010. The Christian Democratic Party commends the bill.

On 13 June 2004 the International Masters Games Association selected Sydney as the host city for the 2009 World Masters Games. Melbourne had the pleasure of hosting the games in 2002, at which approximately 24,886 athletes competed. It is estimated that the Games will bring about $60 million in revenue to our State and cost about $2 million a year. The Games are a multinational and multi-sports event for mature sports men and women. "Mature" means individuals aged 30 years and over, and the age requirement is the only qualification that must be met in order to enter the Games.

The World Masters Games takes place every four years and is open to all competitors—past champions, people who have never competed at championship level, and sports men and women generally. The Games are for people who see sport as an enjoyable path to fitness as well as an opportunity to use physical activity as a method to satisfy other individual and social needs. Some 16 core sports must be catered for, with the option of including 10 additional sports such as rugby, hockey or volleyball. The International Masters Games Association indicates that the Games will be financed through a combination of city and government support, sponsor revenues, licence fees, registration fees and gate revenues. It is incumbent upon the host city to be the financial guarantor and to cover any operating deficit. There will have to be a concerted effort to make sure that the Games are profitable. Thanks to the infrastructure set up for the 2000 Olympic Games, Sydney was able to qualify as a potential host city for the World Masters Games—pre-existing infrastructure is necessary for a city to qualify as a host city of the Games.

The bill constitutes the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee as a statutory corporation. The bill establishes the objectives, functions and governance of the committee. Committee functions will include organising the sports competition and a program of associated events, organising transport for participants and officials, liaising with the Treasury on Games expenditure, and co-ordinating games-related activities with State and Commonwealth agencies and private organisations. The committee will be subject to the direction and control of the Minister for Tourism and Sport and Recreation. However, the committee's day-to-day affairs will be controlled by a chief executive officer [CEO]. A committee will be appointed by the Minister to advise the Minister and the CEO on the achievement by the organising committee of its statutory objectives and the conduct of the Games.

The bill provides for the committee's dissolution on 30 June 2010 and for the transfer of its assets, rights and liabilities to the State. The Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Act will be repealed on 31 December 2010. The Christian Democratic Party commends the bill to the House and wishes the committee well.

The Hon. HENRY TSANG (Parliamentary Secretary) [3.04 p.m.], in reply: Sydney had the best ever Olympic Games in 2000 and, with the passage of the Sydney 2009 World Masters Games Organising Committee Bill, we look forward to having the best ever World Masters Games in 2009. I commend the bill to the House.

Motion agreed to.

Bill read a second time and passed through remaining stages.