There was a great fanfare down south in Brisbane a couple of weeks ago.
It was one year to the day since it had been announced in Tokyo that the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games would be hosted by Brisbane, and exactly 10 years to go until the opening ceremony.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk told us all the IOC's announcement naming Brisbane as host of the biggest sporting event on Earth in 2032 would be a game-changer for Queensland.
"Brisbane 2032 is a transformational, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for all Queenslanders," she said. "It's no accident we're out of the starters' blocks early to maximise Games' planning and legacy outcomes for Queenslanders. We're investing in training infrastructure and elite coaching to give young Queensland athletes the best opportunities."
That was followed up with an announcement of a new $2.1m high-performance gym and athlete health suites at the Sleeman Sports Complex at Chandler.
It's no surprise that of the venue master plan's 37 competition venues, the three regional venues are at Cairns, Townsville and Toowoomba - there's not the infrastructure to host events elsewhere.
But where we can be part of the greatest show on Earth is with our emerging athletes, with regional training hubs, and with our attractions.
We read that improvements to the Emerging Athlete Pathways program have been made to help young athletes, coaches and officials with the cost of competition travel and accommodation in the years ahead.
Eligible Queenslanders can now receive support before their event, instead of after and the minimum travel distance is halved to 125km, so more athletes qualify. Selected athletes from 10 to 18 years, coaches and officials can apply for $500 to compete or officiate at a state or state school event, and $600 for a national or national school event.
Now let's see our stunning scenery, our lifestyle and our can-do attitude given equal billing in the lead-up.
A national team recently held a training camp at Longreach and voted it as exemplary. We need to see more of these kinds of venues recognised.
The excitement of Birmingham on our screens can be multiplied ten-fold in our backyard if the will is there.
- Talk of the Town is a weekly opinion piece written by ACM journalists. The thoughts expressed are their own.