Gold Coast and Ancient Olympia Sign Sister City Reaffirmation Ahead of 2032 Games
by Nick Bourdaniotis · Greek City TimesGOLD COAST, October 2026 — Gold Coast and Ancient Olympia mayors signed a sister city reaffirmation at the Gold Coast Council Chambers on Friday, renewing ties between the two cities ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate and the Mayor of Ancient Olympia, Aristeidis Panagiotopoulos, signed the Reaffirmation Declaration before the Honorary Consul-General of Greece in Queensland, George D. Mastrocostas, and invited guests.
The sister city reaffirmation followed the historic Sister City ceremony in Ancient Olympia, in the western Peloponnese, on 8 September 2026.
Because Queensland will host the 2032 Games, organisers said the sister city reaffirmation strengthens the symbolic connection between the birthplace of the Olympic ideal and the state preparing to welcome the world.
Read more: Ancient Olympia and Australia’s Gold Coast Become Sister Cities
Tate welcomed Panagiotopoulos and the Ancient Olympia delegation to the city for the sister city reaffirmation.
“I am pleased to welcome Mayor Aristeidis Panagiotopoulos to our city to celebrate and reaffirm this important partnership and enduring connection between us,” Mayor Tom Tate said.
Tate said the relationship would support cooperation across many fields.
“A Sister City relationship is a mutual understanding and shared commitment to international cooperation. It gives both the Gold Coast and Ancient Olympia the chance to share ideas in developing education, youth engagement, sport, culture, tourism, heritage and sustainability. This is particularly important in the lead up to the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games.”Tom Tate
“The visit brings the partnership full circle, with our two cities reaffirming their friendship here on the Gold Coast today,” Tate said. “People-to-people connections will be at the heart of the relationship where we can learn from each other.”
Sister city reaffirmation ceremony
At the ceremony, Mastrocostas, who played a central role in the partnership, spoke of uniting the country of his heritage with the city he now calls home.
“In September, I stood on the sacred ground of Ancient Olympia and spoke with immense pride of what Greece had given to the world.
“Today, I stand here, on the Gold Coast, and I feel something perhaps even more profound.
“Because Greece is part of my soul. It is my heritage, my faith, my language, and the memory of generations who came before me.George D. Mastrocostas
“But the Gold Coast is my home,” Mastrocostas said.
Mastrocostas also reflected on the Greek migrants who built new lives in Australia while keeping their language, faith, traditions and identity.
“And that is the extraordinary gift of this country. We were never required to stop loving where we came from in order to love the place we now call home,” he said.
Video: Greek City Times
He thanked Tate for the vision behind the partnership, and Panagiotopoulos for extending the hand of friendship from Ancient Olympia.
“Together, you have created something far greater than an agreement between two cities,” Mastrocostas said. “You have built a bridge between generations, between histories, and between two places that mean so much to so many of us.”
“The Gold Coast brings valuable experience in tourism and major international events while Ancient Olympia brings the Olympic idea and a UNESCO World Heritage Site,” Mayor of Ancient Olympia Aristeidis Panagiotopoulos said.
He said the next step was practical cooperation between the two communities. “Our task now is to turn that shared connection into practical partnerships between our schools, young people, organisations and communities,” he said.
Panagiotopoulos also linked the partnership to the journey of the Olympic Flame. “By the time the Olympic Flame travels from Olympia to Australia for the Brisbane 2032 Games, I want it to be travelling not to strangers, but to friends,” he said.
Olympic Flame in 2032
Looking ahead to 2032, Mastrocostas spoke of the Olympic Flame being lit once again in Ancient Olympia before it begins its journey to Australia.
“In 2032, when the Olympic Flame is lit once again in Ancient Olympia and begins its journey towards Australia, I will think of my children.
“And I will think of the extraordinary symbolism of a flame, born on the soil of our ancestors, travelling to the land where our children took their first breath.
“One land gave us our roots. The other gave those roots a place to grow.
“And now, through this friendship, those two lands are forever connected.”George D. Mastrocostas
Beyond the Olympic link, organisers said the sister city reaffirmation reflects a lasting commitment to cultural, educational, sporting and community ties between Greece and Australia.
The sister city reaffirmation also came on the eve of the Gold Coast Greek Festival at HOTA, Home of the Arts, on Saturday 31 October and Sunday 1 November 2026. The official opening starts on the Main Stage at 2pm on Saturday, when Nick Karanicolas performs the national anthems and Father Romanos Stergiou blesses the festival.
Mastrocostas speaks first as festival patron, followed by Panagiotopoulos, before Tate declares the festival open. The festival runs from 12pm to 10pm on Saturday and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday, and entry costs $10 per day for adults, while children under 13 enter free.
Closing his address at the sister city reaffirmation, Mastrocostas described what the occasion meant to him as a Greek and as an Australian.
“For me, this is not simply the joining of two cities. It is the joining of two homes,” he said. “And as a Greek, as a father, and as someone who loves this beautiful country, I cannot imagine a greater honour.”
Photo gallery of the event
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