City set for mammoth event series

City of Stirling residents and visitors can look forward to a mammoth calendar of events, with a range of sport, music, arts and community initiatives set to take place across the City in the next 12 months.

This series of events has an estimated economic impact valued at more than $10 million dollars to the City and the community.  

Seven major events have been confirmed so far as part of the City’s $570,000 event sponsorship commitment for the 2023/24 financial year, with more to come.

Among the major attractions, the City is sponsoring the Groundswell Festival for the ninth year running. Groundswell is WA’s largest multisport youth event and kicks off on Friday 6 October, with a weekend of family friendly festivities at Scarborough Beach.

The City also welcomes several major events for the first time, including the return of the iconic Perth Festival which is joining the 2024 line-up with a series of local events and workshops.

In an Australian first, the City will be hosting the 2023 International Canoe Federation’s Canoe Ocean Racing World Championships, coordinated by Paddle Australia. 

In addition, the 2024 AusCycling BMX Racing National Championships will take place in the City for the first time, thanks to the support of Tourism Western Australia and Westside BMX in Balcatta; it’s just the second time this premier BMX event has ever taken place here in Western Australia.

Sponsored events and organisations confirmed include:

• Baseball WA for the 2023 Barclay Cup at Carine Open Space | Sunday 1 – Saturday 7 October 2023 ($5,000)
• Scarborough Beach Association for Groundswell Festival 2023 presented by the City of Stirling at Scarborough Beach | Friday 6 – Sunday 8 October 2023 ($80,000 plus $20,000 value-in-kind)
• Stirling Business Association for the Stirling Business Awards 2023 at Rendezvous Hotel Scarborough | Friday 10 November 2023 ($10,000 plus $10,870 value-in-kind)
• Red Dust OCR for the Lifeline Family Obstacle Course Fun Run 2023 at Carine Regional Open Space | Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 November 2023 ($5,000)
• Paddle Australia for the International Canoe Federation Canoe Ocean Racing World Championships 2023 at Scarborough Beach | Thursday 30 November – Sunday 3 December 2023 ($50,000 plus $70,000 value-in-kind)
• Perth Festival for the Perth Festival 2024 at City of Stirling locations | Thursday 22 – Sunday 25 February 2024 ($122,000 plus $20,000 value-in-kind)
• AusCycling for the BMX Racing National Championships at Westside BMX Club Balcatta | Monday 7 to Sunday 13 October 2024 ($70,000 plus $17,000 value-in-kind).

City of Stirling Chief Executive Officer Stuart Jardine PSM said the events calendar was lining up to be the best the City had ever seen.

“This is an extremely exciting program of major events, which promises to put the City on Australia’s events map as well as appealing to our diverse Stirling community,” he said.

“These events generate fantastic vibrancy, while increasing the destination appeal of the City, generating enormous economic activity and community value.

“Major sporting events such as the Canoe Ocean Racing World Championships and the BMX Racing National Championships will generate significant interest across the sporting world.

“On top of our continued support for successful events like Groundswell Festival, we are also incredibly excited to announce the City’s sponsorship of the 2024 Perth Festival.

“The sponsorship means the City can support several local events and workshops, ensuring our community can enjoy and participate in WA’s renowned State-wide multi-arts festival.”

Further event season additions and sponsorships are expected to be announced later in the year.

For more information on what’s on in the City, visit the events calendar on the City’s website.