Tamworth puts in bid to host 2019 Australasian Fire Fighting Championships

The Leader can reveal the Tamworth Regional North 3 zone of Fire and Rescue NSW will send a representative to New Zealand this weekend, in a bid to secure hosting rights for the 2019 Australasian Firefighting Championships.

Retained West Tamworth firefighter Robert Eckersley has been tasked with selling our city to the championship board with hopes more than 400 firefighters from New Zealand, Fiji and Australia, along with their families could converge on the area.

Fire and Rescue NSW zone Superintendent Tom Cooper said to help secure the deal, Tamworth Regional Council had given the delegates promotional material to hand out at the weekend’s championships in Carterton, New Zealand.

Firefighters from the Moonbi/Kootingal Rural Fire Service and Uralla NSW Fire and Rescue will compete.

“Rob Eckersley is going to make a bid for the 2019 Australasian Championships to be held here in Tamworth,” Superintendent Cooper said.

“His job is to convince the board that Tamworth is capable of holding a successful championship which we have done before, but never an Australasian event. Council are right behind our bid because it would bring a lot of visitors to the area.

“They’ve supplied us with collateral, show bags and information packages. But council also supply the competition track for us and maintain it. We believe it is one of the best in Australia to run a championship on because of it’s proximity to the CBD.”

It’s expected the 2019 event location would be announced this weekend. Council’s economic and destination development coordinator Kate Baker said event would be positive for the area.

"Events are really important to the city, so council supported NSW Fire and Rescue in putting this bid in to bring the championship to the city,” she said. “Not only does it increase overnight visitation, but it gives the city a profile from other states and countries.”