the Hambantota bidders claimed they had already secured enough votes to win the hosting rights. However, on 11 November it was officially announced Gold Coast City had won the rights to host the games. Development and preparation The event was overseen by the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation (GOLDOC). The GOLDOC was formed in 2012 by the Government of Queensland. Its headquarters were located in Ashmore, a suburban region of Gold Coast. In February 2012, Mark Peters was appointed chief executive officer of the GOLDOC. The Queensland Government Minister Kate Jones was tasked with overseeing the Games. Peter Beattie AC served as the Chairman of GOLDOC who was appointed on 17 May 2016 to replace Nigel Chamier OAM. Venues The Gold Coast 2018 was hosted across 18 venues located on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane, Townsville and Cairns. Sporting venues were well ahead available of Gold Coast 2018 ensuring that they were used and tested before the Games. The Australian and Queensland Governments and the City of Gold Coast invested A$320 million to deliver new and upgraded venues. Lendlease was the overlay delivery partner and official supporter property and infrastructure of the Games. Venues on the Gold Coast Carrara Stadium, located in the suburb of Carrara, was the main venue for Athletics, the Opening ceremony and the Closing ceremony. The seating capacity of the stadium was temporarily increased to 40,000 for the games by the installation of a large temporary North Stand. The new Carrara Sports and Leisure Centre hosted the Badminton, Para Powerlifting, Weightlifting and Wrestling events. The Carrara Indoor Sports Stadium hosted the back-of-house event operations. The Gold Coast City Convention and Exhibition Centre, located in the suburb of Broadbeach, hosted Basketball and Netball (preliminaries) and also served as the Main Media Centre and International Broadcast centre hosting over 3000 members of the worlds press. The Broadbeach Bowls Club hosted the Bowls competition. The Nerang Mountain Bike Trails was the location for the Mountain Bike competition. A new course was constructed to meet international competition requirements and temporary spectator seating for 2,000 spectators. The newly built Coomera Indoor Sports Centre hosted Gymnastics and Netball (finals). The Oxenford Studios hosted the sports of Boxing, Table Tennis and Squash. During Games mode the venue was enhanced to provide for the International Sporting Federation technical venue requirements and provide spectator seating of 3,000 (boxing) and 3,200 (table tennis). The