City to Bay Fun Run
Adjourned debate on motion of Hon. R.B. Martin:
That this council—
- Acknowledges that this year marks the 50th running of the City to Bay race;
- Commends the City to Bay for promoting good health and the enjoyment of fitness, supporting athletics communities in South Australia and for providing a platform for fundraising activities by race participants; and
- Recognises the dedicated efforts of City to Bay staff and volunteers in ensuring that the event is successful each year.
(Continued from 11 September 2024.)
The Hon. J.S. LEE (Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (12:06): I rise today to indicate the support from the Liberal Party (Liberal Opposition) for the Honourable Member's motion to recognise and acknowledge this significant milestone for the City-Bay Fun Run.
The City-Bay has long been held as one of the state's most popular and beloved events, and is Adelaide's largest running event and largest mass participation event. It certainly motivates people from all walks of life to come together as a community.
The City-Bay run is organised by a not-for-profit organisation which aims to raise funds to support athletics in South Australia and assist athletes and clubs within the athletics community in South Australia.
Aside from the fundraising effort, many fitness clubs, rehabilitation organisations, businesses, individuals and, I also note, multicultural organisations have used the event to achieve personal goals as well as fundraising for their community.
On Sunday 15 September, the City-Bay run held its 50th running to great success. Happy 50th anniversary!
More than 25,000 people participated in this year's race across its three-kilometre, five-kilometre, 12-kilometre and half marathon distances. Thanks to the amazing turnout at this year's race, the City-Bay was able to raise an astonishing $455,841, to be exact, so nearly half a million dollars.
I also want to congratulate a couple of my very sporty colleagues who completed the race this year.
The Member for Morphett, Stephen Patterson, ran in the six-kilometre race alongside his lovely wife, Tammy. Stephen has long been a supporter of the City-Bay Fun Run. As a former footballer, he continues to be a great sportsman.
Also, the Hon. Heidi Girolamo made sure that our Upper House Chamber was not overshadowed and ran a very impressive 12-kilometre race. Congratulations to both Members.
The race for the top spots was extraordinarily close, with Isaac Heyne completing the 12-kilometre race in just 33 minutes and 38 seconds, while the runner-up, Jack Rayner, came in just a second behind, a pretty close result. Congratulations to both of them.
For the female runners it was Izzi Batt-Doyle who came in the fastest with a time of 37 minutes and 20 seconds, and Jessica Stenson finished closely behind with a time of 37 minutes and 40 seconds. Congratulations to all the fantastic runners. No matter the time set, each participant crossed the finish line with pride and joy.
The City-Bay Fun Run had a much more humbling beginning when it was established in November 1973 by the well-known Adelaide athlete, Bob Clarke, and a volunteer committee. Inspired by the success of Sydney's City to Surf Fun Run, 1,637 participated in the first City-Bay from Adelaide Town Hall to Glenelg Town Hall, with runners paying 50¢ each to enter the race, with funds raised from the event being donated to Athletics South Australia.
Over the many years since, the City-Bay has hit many milestones and achievements. The finish was taken to Colley Reserve and then changed to the Glenelg Football Oval, where it remained for many years. In 1992, The Advertiser was approached to become the major naming rights sponsor and has contributed substantially over the years to help build up the race.
While Lumary is the current naming partner, The Advertiser, through its Sunday Mail, remains an important supporting partner. The excellent media coverage certainly helps to lift the profile of the event and promote the spirit of our community.
In 1997, the event adopted the Champion Chip Timing system to enable the event to finish at Moseley Square, where it finishes today. This certainly helps in the event gaining a national profile and attracting elite runners and international entrants.
For its 30th running in 2002, an additional event was added to provide people with an alternative distance, the six-kilometre half City-Bay run.
I am glad they did introduce that because in 2009 my husband, Eddie, and I, with a group of friends, participated in the six-kilometre run. Mind you, we walked a lot of the time instead of running—we are not as fit as most. Congratulations for the introduction of a six-kilometre half City-Bay. More than 1,300 people entered this event, contributing to a record turnout of 13,200 participants.
It is truly amazing to look back and see how much this beloved race has grown over the past 50 years to become one of the most widely supported annual events in the state. This tremendous growth and achievement would not have been possible without the tireless effort, dedication and passion of the team behind the City-Bay Fun Run. In particular, I want to highlight race director Joe Stevens OAM. Joe is an institution of the athletics community in South Australia.
In addition to his leadership in organising the City-Bay Fun Run, Joe has served as president of Athletics South Australia, vice-president of the South Australian Olympic Council, board member of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association (SA Division), and board member of Sport SA.
Joe was awarded his Medal of the Order of Australia during the Queen's Birthday Honours in 2021 for his services to athletics. He also officiated at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and both the 2006 and 2018 Commonwealth Games. Previous awards for his commitment to athletics include Official of the Year for Athletics Australia in 2010, and the same award for Athletics SA in 2003.
I want to take this opportunity to commend the most important people, and that is all the participants, the thousands of participants. Each year, tens of thousands of participants of various ages, backgrounds and abilities show up to make this race the spectacle that it is. Without the constant love and support that the City-Bay receives from South Australians, this race would not have reached such heights and also raised so many funds for charities that it has over five decades.
Once again, my sincere appreciation and congratulations to the organisers, volunteers, participants and sponsors of the City-Bay Fun Run: a very happy 50th anniversary. I would like to thank the Hon. Reggie Martin for bringing this motion to the Chamber, allowing us to all contribute to this congratulatory message.