Sports Gold Coast launches Women in Sport Project

WORDS: Luke Ireland - Sports Gold Coast PHOTOGRAPHY Brian Usher - www.usherusher.com

Sports Gold Coast launched its Women in Sport project this afternoon, aspiring to make the Gold Coast the home of women’s sport in Australia.

Amongst the turnout of local corporates, dignitaries and female athletes, was Mayor Tom Tate, MP Angie Bell, and GC Suns CEO Mark Evans, all of which threw their support behind the initiative.

Having already raised $20,000 for the project through corporate donations, SGC was able to present the GC Suns Women’s side with a cheque to support their ongoing work on and off the field.

 Sports Gold Coast Chairman, Geoff Smith said the Gold Coast has been the beneficiary of over $1 billion invested in sports facilities over the past 15 years which are largely underutilised.

“Sport is a major pillar in this city and we have an opportunity to carve out a ‘niche’ for the city by promoting it as the home of women’s sport.

“We punch well above our weight competing with capital cities around Australia to host sporting events and we’re very successful, but we need to do more to make our city stand out”, Mr Smith said.

Mr Smith said he hoped the launch of the Women in Sport project will spark further interest and a commitment from corporate and sporting stakeholders to develop and implement a whole of city strategy for women in sport, based on the Gold Coast.

Sports Gold Coast is a not-for-profit company established by a diverse group of community minded Gold Coast business leaders to provide a vehicle for the city’s business to support, develop and promote sport on the Gold Coast