‘Excavators and bulldozers’: Brisbane launches $2.6bn Olympic stadium project amid protests

Protesters react at the site of the 2032 Olympic Stadium in Brisbane’s Victoria Park, Australia, Monday, June 1, 2026. (AP) Work on the main stadium for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics has begun after protesters were pushed back and excavation equipment entered the Victoria Park site on Monday, the Associated Press reported. The development begins almost five years after Brisbane won the Summer Games.The Independent Games Infrastructure and Coordination Authority took control of the city center site from Brisbane City Council at midnight. Temporary fencing was erected before construction began on the A$3.6 billion ($2.6 billion) stadium.A heavy security presence followed the arrest of five people by Queensland Police in recent days and the removal of protest camps by council staff.A small group of activists were moved from inside the fenced compound outside just after midnight as construction preparations continued.Queensland Premier David Crisafulli began work by turning the first sod. He said the people were asking the government to “go for it”.“It’s well under way – we have a plan to deliver for the 2032 Games and beyond, and we’re delivering today,” he told a news conference, according to the AP. “Victoria Park will be the beating sporting, cultural and green heart of Brisbane and a place that all Queenslanders can be proud of.”Crisafulli said he respects the right to protest, but not in areas where “diggers and bulldozers” are operating.Indigenous and environmental groups have opposed the stadium project in a heritage park near central Brisbane, saying the development would remove greenery and culturally important areas.The Prime Minister said more than two-thirds of Victoria Park would remain as green public space after construction.Hundreds of protesters gathered at the site on Sunday. The situation remained calm on a cold winter morning until Monday morning, when police were present at the entrances and patrolling the area.Save Victoria Park organizer Andrea Lunt said protesters were discussing their next steps.“This space, with its heritage and history, is such a special asset to Brisbane,” she said. “We are not an anti-Olympic group, but we do not support the Olympics in their current form.”The International Olympic Committee approved Queensland’s site plan for the 2032 Games last year, saying the project was “on track”.Queensland won the bid to host the 2032 Olympic Games with support from the Australian Federal Government for the construction of the venue.Last year the State Government removed Victoria Park from heritage protection, environmental protection and planning and converted it to freehold land. These decisions have been contested by Aboriginal, cultural and environmental groups.Federal Environment Minister Murray Watt said he had received 10 applications to protect an important Aboriginal site in the park, which is described as being “at risk of injury or desecration”.He said some applications have been rejected and others are still under review.Watt said heritage laws are not meant to stop projects, but to ensure that steps are taken “to preserve or protect the area from some injury or desecration”.