It is also the greatest opportunity to promote ourselves worldwide that I have ever seen.
I have been involved in the Coast media since 1980 and i have never seen an event gain so much national and international coverage as this story.
The only event that comes close is the visit of Lady Diana and Prince Charles to a Terrigal surf carnival in 1988. However that drew only national and Commonwealth interest.
Football is a worldwide sport and popular in places that have never heard of Australia let alone the Central Coast. Bolt is one of the best known and most loved athletes on the planet.
He would be constantly followed by the world media during his stint on the coast.
If we can piggyback images of Bolt and our amazing beaches, waterways and lifestyle it would be the be biggest tourist bonanza we will ever see.
This would take a massive rethink by our tourist and business leaders both nationally and internationally.
Much of the Australian media is still ignorant about the growth and beauty of the Coast. In the national sport programs when news of the Bolt story broke, the Coast was portrayed as “sleepy Gosford” and full of “weekenders and retirees”.
The Bolt phenomenon is a once in a lifetime opportunity that we can’t afford to miss out on.
