From the left: Ishikawa Katsutoshi ( Consul-General of Japan in Qld), Julie Yamamoto, Sally Newman, Kate Blumke, David Shield, Andrew Hay
On 16 September the AJS (Queensland) hosted its third Queensland Japan Sports Diplomacy event.
The event featured talks from Kate Blumke (Director, Legacy Implementation, Department of Sport, Racing and Olympic and Paralympic Games), Katsutoshi Ishikawa (Consul-General of Japan in Queensland) and Sally Newman (Events Management Queensland).
This event focussed on:
- the Olympic and Paralympic 2032 Games and the possible legacy outcomes from the Games and how sports diplomacy interacts with the Games and these legacies
- how major events around the world with a focus on Queensland and Japan are reinforcing the importance of sports diplomacy between athletes who compete, whether they are professional or non-professional, organisers, volunteers and spectators
- sports diplomacy isn’t something that exists between professional athletes, it is a much broader concept including exchange between Queensland and Japan and the many organisers, volunteers and spectators involved in sporting events
- how the people-to-people ties further underpin the bilateral relationship
- an introduction to the growing ties between Queensland and the Kansai region with a specific focus on the annual Kobe marathon, annual Gold Coast marathon, the Pan Pacific Masters Games and the World Masters Games in Kansai in 2027
The event was attended by around 50 persons. We look forward to hosting future Sports Diplomacy event in the lead up to the Olympic and Paralympic 2032 Games.
