governance and economics committee 8 september …

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Agenda – Governance and Economics Committee 8 September 2021 - #6720895

GOVERNANCE AND ECONOMICS COMMITTEE

8 SEPTEMBER 2021 2

POST EVENT REPORT, 2021 GREAT BARRIER REEF MASTERS GAMES

Christine Posgate | 52/1/19 | #6712868

RECOMMENDATION:

It is recommended that Council notes the outcomes of the 2021 Great Barrier Reef Masters Games.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

This report provides a review of the fifth Great Barrier Reef Masters Games held 20 – 23 May 2021 in Cairns. Despite the uncertainty surrounding travelling amidst the COVID-19 outbreak, 2494 competitors and non-playing officials participated in the Games which was an 18.8% increase from 2019 (2099 participants). Competitors came from every state in Australia, and eight came from New Zealand. The Games consisted of:

• 17 sport competitions

• The Games Gallop fun run event (attracting 141 local registrations)

• Three social nights, and

• A Sportsperson’s Dinner featuring Games Ambassador Natalie Cook OAM OLY which was a sell-out.

The 2021 Games delivered over $39k in revenue over budgeted expectations and resulted in an additional $1M million in visitor expenditure to the region, compared to 2019. Key insights from the Games include:

• Total overnight visitor expenditure was $3.49M ($2.12M in 2019)

• Direct visitor nights in Cairns was 14,333 nights (9059 in 2019)

• Total number of individuals (competitors, supporters, officials) attracted by the Games 4750 (4035 in 2019)

Since Council took over the management of delivery of the GBRMG in 2015, there has been a marked increase in participants from 1056 in 2015 to 2494 in 2021. Cost to Council has also greatly reduced, with Council contributing $70k cash plus in-kind plus staff costs in 2015, to the Games now costing less than $40k cash. Both the 2021 and 2023 editions of the Great Barrier Reef Masters Games are supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland

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COMMENT

The following noteworthy figures taken from the survey TEQ conducted post-Games:

STATISTICS

Total competitors / officials 2494

Overall individuals who attended / participated 4750

Average number of days attended 4

Direct Visitor nights – Cairns 14,333

Attendee break down:

Local attendees 1261

International attendees 15

Interstate attendees 1297

Intrastate attendees 2177

Total Athletes (does not include Non Playing Officials or supporters)

2276

Non Playing Officials 72

Supporters 146

Gender demographics 46% male 54% female

First time at GBRMG 58%

Sports participating 17

As mentioned previously, participant numbers increased by 18.8% in 2021, which when considered in conjunction with the 37% increase from the 2017 Games to 2019 Games, shows a pattern of strong growth and interest in the event. The TEQ post-event survey showed direct visitor nights in Cairns had an increase of 50% (from 9059 in 2019 to 14,333 in 2021). Cairns had 300 more interstate visitors than in 2019 and attracted 12.5% more intrastate visitors which resulted in the total overnight visitor expenditure increasing by more than $1.37M. Participation The 2021 GBRMG showed significant growth and opportunity for further development with increased participation and one new sport added (duathlon). Below are statistics on the growth of the sports:

Sport 2015 2017 2019 2021 Difference ’19 to ‘21

% increase

Archery 0 19 19 20 +1 5.3

Athletics 62 67 87 120 +33 37.9

Baseball 52 64 85 125 +40 47

Basketball 104 126 150 196 +46 30.7

Beach Volleyball 28 51 73 138 +65 89

Cricket 115 132 218 169 -49 -22.5

Cycling 0 45 40 59 +19 47.5

Dragon boat paddling ? - 88 - - -

Duathlon - - - 37 - -

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Sport 2015 2017 2019 2021 Difference ’19 to ‘21

% increase

Golf 0 77 105 117 +12 11.4

Hockey 142 86 149 171 +22 14.8

Judo 0 19 10 - - -

Netball 199 258 264 259 -5 -1.9

Non playing officials 45 33 79 72 -7 -8.9

Rugby League - 0 41 113 +72 175.6

Softball 132 159 276 254 -22 -8

Swimming 0 115 147 279 +132 89.8

Target Pistol Shooting - - 22 35 +13 59

Tennis 30 60 49 103 +54 110.2

Trail and road running - - 81 130 +49 60.5

Supporters 60 55 98 146 +48 49

As seen above some of the sports had amazing results, with beach volleyball, swimming and tennis doubling their numbers; and baseball, cycling, target pistol shooting and trail/road running recording a 50% increase. Rugby league ran a full competition due to all other national rugby league Masters competitions being unable to go ahead this year. Ambassadors The GBRMG was very proud to secure gold medallist and five-time Olympian Natalie Cook OAM OLY as Games Ambassador for 2021. She attended the Games Gallop, spoke with a TAFE class of future athletes, undertook media opportunities, ran a volleyball training session for over 100 children from 12 schools, attended the opening ceremony, the Sportsperson’s Dinner, and numerous sports over the weekend. The HasBeens basketball team again attended the Games and patronised each of the three social nights and mingled with attendees and VIP’s. They all attended the Games Gallop, with Chris Anstey working with Natalie Cook to present medals and prizes. Marketing and Communications Media, marketing and public relations for the 2021 Great Barrier Masters Games was delivered solely by Council’s Marketing and Communications Branch. Some traditional media (print, radio and television) was utilised, but the focus was on alternative media – mainly digital advertising, and an extensive social media campaign. Points to note:

• Total value of media coverage was calculated as more than $150,000 (according to iSentia).

• Subscription for the e-newsletter grew from 3827 during the 2019 Games to a peak of 5473 subscribers for the start of the 2021 Games – a 43% increase.

• There was a 24.5% increase of more than 1000 followers to the GBRMG Facebook page from 4462 in 2019 to 5556 in 2021.

• Two digital campaigns were run with men and women between 35 and 64 years of age who are actively interested online with participating in sport and fitness were geo targeted. August’s campaign resulted in 2,454,765 impressions and a strong click through rate of 0.29% which is higher than the industry benchmark of 0.06%. September’s campaign resulted in 249,399 and a strong click through rate of

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0.43%. TTNQ assisted with funding a retargeting campaign focussing on regions with direct flight access to Cairns.

• From registration opening to the end of the Games, more than 40,000 users visited the GBRMG website. This is more than double the number for the 2019 GBRMG, with almost 140,000 page views.

Sponsorship As Cairns is a tourist town and the tourism industry was suffering due to the pandemic, cash sponsorships were hard to attract. A ‘tourism partner’ sponsorship category was created and sold to tourism companies as more of a marketing opportunity rather than a sponsorship. As part of a two-year sponsorship agreement, Tourism and Events Queensland (TEQ) provided cash over three instalments dependent upon reporting and other milestones. Tourism Tropical North Queensland utilised event recovery funding available to them and purchased $10,000 of targeted digital advertising on behalf of the GBRMG. Other sponsors of the Games included Hilton Cairns and AVIS Car Rental as preferred suppliers, The Jack as social hub partner, Team Elite as merchandise partner, Lotsa as printing partner, and Down Under Cruise and Dive as major prize provider. FINANCIALS The grant was received from TEQ as per the contract. The 18.8% growth in participants resulted in a $40K increase against budget from registration income. Merchandise commission had a 57.5% increase from $3414 in 2019 to $5376 this year, another positive variance. As can be seen from the below figures, Council had allowed for a $40,000 loss, but given the success of the Games, only $32K was utilised. A majority of this expense can be attributed to COVID related charges as mentioned above including infrastructure to create the new outdoor social hub at Fogarty Park. Sporting clubs and associations benefited to the tune of $138,913, compared to almost $111,000 in 2019 (a 25% increase).

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ATTACHMENTS:

Great Barrier Reef Masters Games 2021: Overview (#6725989)

Christine Posgate General Manager HR and Organisational Change

Actual Budget Variance

Operating Income

Grants 50,000 50,000 -

Cash Sponsorship 5,500 10,000 (4,500)

Registrations 166,374 125,455 40,920

Commission (Merchandise) 5,376 2,500 2,876

TOTAL INCOME 227,250 187,955 39,296

Operating Expenses

External Consultants / Contractors/ Volunteers 16,513 16,250 (263)

Social Program 63,069 58,900 (4,169)

Community Pre Game Event & Launch 15,454 9,000 (6,454)

Sport Specific Costs 77,335 58,825 (18,510)

Marketing and Promotions 31,413 39,715 8,302

Advertising 47,272 35,100 (12,172)

Rego Hub 10,258 11,100 842

TOTAL EXPENSES 261,314 228,890 (32,424)

NET GAIN / (LOSS) (34,064) (40,935) 6,872

External In-Kind Contributions

Sponsorship – The Jack 3,000

Sponsorship – Down Under Cruise & Dive 1,000

TOTAL IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED 4,000

Council’s In-Kind Contributions

Cairns Regional Council - employee time estimate 129,264

Cairns Regional Council - Venue/Resource Charges 3,367

TOTAL COUNCIL IN-KIND 132,632

TOTAL IN-KIND (136,632)

Sports Payments (as agent – additional to above)

Sports Fees Received 138,913

Sports Fees Paid (138,913)

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governance and economics committee 8 september …

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