World Masters Games 2017

EPG ensured that World Masters Games 2017 was ready to deliver ‘…the best Games ever’

The World Masters Games is the largest multi-sport event in the world. In terms of athlete numbers, it is bigger in scale than even the Olympic Games. Auckland hosted the ninth installment of the Games, which saw over 28,000 participants in twenty-eight (28) sports across forty-eight (48) competition venues.

The local organising committee, World Masters Games 2017 Limited (WMG2017), engaged the Event Planning Group (EPG) to provide Games Delivery Coordination Services to the event. Key activities included concept planning, detailed operational planning, Games Testing & Readiness exercises, stakeholder integration and education, development and operation of the Games Operations Centre (GOC) and Games Time Communication, Coordination and Information (C4I).

EPG delivered these services across five (5) key phases commencing in May 2016, that included Concept Planning, Detailed Operational Planning, Operational Readiness & Testing, Games Delivery and the Post Games phase.

Key deliverables during the Concept Planning phase included the development of the Concept of Operations for Games Readiness and the Strategic Plan, which included the identification and integration of key external stakeholders and an iterative stakeholder matrix profiling stakeholder contribution and commitment profiles. In the Detailed Operational Planning phase, the approach to testing and readiness was defined and the Games Operations Centre Plan, Incident Management Plan (IMP) and Crisis Management Plan (CMP) were developed.

During the Operational Readiness & Testing phase, EPG delivered three (3) key Games Readiness Exercises. These comprised an educational component and readiness exercise with each session increasing in complexity as they progressed. Games Readiness Exercises were conducted with WMG2017 personnel, WMG2017 Sports and Venue Partners, key WMG2017 suppliers and members of the Inter-Agency Working Group established for the Games. Inter-Agency Working Group members included New Zealand Police, New Zealand Fire Service, Auckland Transport, Auckland Airport, New Zealand Civil Defence, St John and Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED).

In addition to these exercises, EPG designed and led an exercise for the WMG2017 Executive and senior management team to educate and test their readiness in the scenario an incident was escalated, or crisis declared. EPG also presented its Testing and Readiness Framework and participated in the Inter-Agency Working Group readiness exercise conducted by the New Zealand Governments World Cup’s Office.

During the Games, EPG was responsible for the delivery of the Games Operations Centre (GOC) located within the Auckland Transport Operations Centre (ATOC) at Queens Wharf. The GOC was the ‘Nerve Centre’ for the event, acting as the central hub for Games time information flow and reporting. This included the management of issues and incidents captured in the Games time issues and incident management system. In leading the GOC, EPG acted as the integrator between venues, sports partners, delivery partners, WMG2017 personnel, external agencies and WMG2017 stakeholders. EPG monitored Games time issues, made informed operational decisions and resolved escalated issues.

At the Games closing ceremony, International Masters Games Association (IMGA) President, Kai Holm told the audience that the 2017 Games had met all the professional standards expected, delivered venues in perfect condition and delivered “…the best Games ever”. EPG also completed key post project and transfer of knowledge reporting requirements to assist in the planning for the next games in 2021, to be held in the Kansai region of Japan.