The following comments are attributed to Greater Geelong CEO
Martin Cutter:
What is the City’s
response to the cancellation of the event?
We
are disappointed by the cancellation of the 2020 Blackball World Championships.
However, we understand the difficult decision that the event organiser has had
to make, given the significant number of international attendees that were
expected to attend the championships. With the uncertainty of the timeline for lifting of restrictions on
overseas travel, we understand why this decision has been taken.
How much money had the
City invested in the championships prior to its cancellation?
Council
via its Geelong Major Events Committee had committed sponsorship support of
$60,000 to the Championships. This
sponsorship is not paid if the event is not staged.
What is the expected
financial impact of this cancellation?
The
expected estimated economic benefit from the hosting of the 2020 Blackball
World Championships was $3.3 million.
Upon the announcement
of this event, the city noted Major Events contributed about $65 million to the
local economy every year. Does the City have an estimate of what impact the
coronavirus has had on the financial contribution of major events to Geelong so
far?
No, we don’t have those numbers at the
moment. We are currently collecting
information to give us a better understanding of the lost economic benefit from
events which have been forced to cancel due to COVID-19.
