Brisbane winning the 2032 Olympics is just as important for Australia’s next wave of aspiring Olympians as it is for current-day athletes, according to gold medalist Natalie Cook.

International Olympics Committee President Thomas Bach last night declared Brisbane the host city for the 2032 Games, the announcement seen live in Brisbane and across Australia.

Cook, the President of the Queensland Olympic Council, told Deborah Knight she was in the thick of the action in South Bank last night, and the highlight was the reaction of the many children in attendance.

“I was so pleased to see them right up the front on the rope … the joy on their faces and the tears.

“I had a little eight-year-old girl crying, hugging me, saying ‘I want to be an Olympian too’.

“You really can’t articulate that, you have to feel it, you have to be amongst it and you feel it in your bones how special it is to these athletes.”

Cook also discussed John Coates’ relationship with Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszcuk, what the 2032 mascot should be and how big a threat COVID is to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

Press PLAY below to hear the full interview

Image: Getty