{"id":949441,"date":"2026-11-02T03:32:13","date_gmt":"2026-11-02T03:32:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/949441\/"},"modified":"2026-11-02T03:32:13","modified_gmt":"2026-11-02T03:32:13","slug":"crocodile-spotted-near-rockhamptons-planned-2032-olympic-rowing-course","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/949441\/","title":{"rendered":"Crocodile spotted near Rockhampton’s planned 2032 Olympic rowing course"},"content":{"rendered":"

The sighting of a saltwater crocodile near the proposed 2032 Olympic rowing precinct in Rockhampton is under investigation, while Rowing Australia says it is a “shock” and a wake-up call.<\/p>\n

North Rockhampton Golf Club alerted members at the weekend when the crocodile, estimated to be up to 3 metres long, was spotted near the 11th hole.<\/p>\n

The sighting was within a few kilometres of the Fitzroy River precinct earmarked for rowing and canoe sprint events<\/a> at the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games.<\/p>\n

\"Aerial<\/p>\n

The selection of Rockhampton as the home of the Games’ rowing has been questioned by some. (Supplied: Rockhampton Regional Council)<\/p>\n

On Monday, a spokesperson for the Department of the Environment, Tourism, Science and Innovation (DETSI) said the sighting was not reported to the department, but was now under investigation.<\/p>\n

Speaking in Hervey Bay on Monday morning, Queensland Premier David Crisafulli played down concerns about the crocodile and expressed confidence in Rockhampton’s ability to host the Olympic rowing events.<\/p>\n

“Many, many decades of success prove that it’s a world-class venue,” he said.<\/p>\n

“It’s a magnificent community and they’ll do it very, very well.”<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

David Crisafulli has backed Rockhampton’s rowing venue amid renewed crocodile concerns. (ABC Capricornia: Jacob Gamble)<\/p>\n

Rowing Australia life member Ray Ebert said the sighting was a wake-up call for those involved in planning the 2032 Olympic rowing events on the Fitzroy River.<\/p>\n

“It’s a bit of a shock to me,” Mr Ebert told ABC News Breakfast on Monday.<\/p>\n

“I’ve been saying that the crocodiles are the least of our problems. I’m going to admit to something that none of the politicians have admitted to: maybe I was wrong.”<\/p>\n

Mr Ebert pointed to previous crocodile sightings in the area, including two reported in December 2024, involving animals measuring about 2.5 metres and 1 metre.<\/a><\/p>\n

Loading…<\/p>\n

He said the latest sighting raised questions about how authorities would manage crocodile risks around the proposed rowing venue.<\/p>\n

“It’s not the crocodiles that you can see that I would be worried about. It’s the ones that I can’t see,” he said.<\/p>\n

Mr Ebert questioned whether the Queensland government was taking the issue seriously enough and said the sighting could prompt further questions about the venue’s suitability and safety.<\/p>\n

Rowing venue scrutiny<\/p>\n

State and national rowing regattas have been held on the Fitzroy River and the venue has also been used by Australian rowing teams for pre-Olympic training camps over the years.<\/p>\n

In September, Mr Crisafulli announced the Rockhampton venue had passed an independent technical assessment “with flying colours”<\/a> to host rowing and canoe sprint events at the 2032 Brisbane Games.<\/p>\n

It came after months of fierce debate over the Fitzroy River’s suitability<\/a>, including its status as a crocodile habitat.<\/p>\n

\"Single<\/p>\n

The Rockhampton rowing facility has hosted multiple events. (Supplied: Rockhampton Fitzroy Rowing Club)<\/p>\n

International sporting bodies are now awaiting the next phase of venue planning, which include technical details and confirmation of service levels and facilities needed for Olympic and Paralympic competitions.<\/p>\n

Queensland Opposition Leader Steven Miles said the sighting highlighted the need for the Crisafulli government to release the technical report underpinning Rockhampton’s selection as an Olympic rowing venue.<\/p>\n

Mr Miles said the report should outline how crocodile risks would be managed during the Games, arguing its release would help address concerns about the Fitzroy River.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A sign at the North Rockhampton Golf Club warns visitors of crocodiles on the course. (ABC News: Jake Grant)<\/p>\n

University of Queensland crocodile expert and emeritus professor Craig Franklin was more critical of the decision to hold Olympic rowing on the Fitzroy River.<\/p>\n

He described it as a political decision rather than one based on common sense, saying he would go so far as to call it “foolish”.<\/p>\n

On September 19, a saltwater croc was spotted upstream from the Rockhampton rowing course, according to the Queensland government’s official sightings dashboard.<\/p>\n

There have been two further sightings since that were reported closer to the proposed venue.<\/p>\n

Croc expert supports removal<\/p>\n

Reptile expert John Lever, who owns Koorana Crocodile Farm near Rockhampton, said the animal was likely to be a male saltwater crocodile and estimated it was “up to three metres” long based on the photograph of the sighting.<\/p>\n

Mr Lever said wildlife rangers would likely need to assess the animal’s behaviour before a decision was made about whether it should be removed.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Koorana Crocodile Farm owner John Lever. (ABC Capricornia: Aaron Kelly)<\/p>\n

The area is not currently classified as a Category A zone, where crocodiles are automatically targeted for removal.<\/p>\n

However, Mr Lever said he believed crocodiles spotted in the vicinity of the planned Olympic venue should be dealt with.<\/p>\n

“With the Olympics coming up, my take on this would be that any crocodile seen in that area should be removed,” he said.<\/p>\n

“But that’s not up to me to do that, it’s up to the government.”<\/p>\n

DETSI has been contacted for comment.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

The Fitzroy River has faced intense scrutiny since its selection as an Olympic venue. (Supplied: Rockhampton Regional Council)<\/p>\n

Mr Lever said heavy rainfall in central Queensland last week may have stimulated the animal’s activity.<\/p>\n

“There’s crocodiles, of course, in the Fitzroy [River], we all know that, so a sighting is not uncommon,” he said.<\/p>\n

“This is the mating season. Males and females are both moving around looking for mates.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The sighting of a saltwater crocodile near the proposed 2032 Olympic rowing precinct in Rockhampton is under investigation,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":949442,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[212433,64,63,14933,11630,235552,54766,49865,17331,9262,10018,10589,17330,17332,17335,516647,128,338],"class_list":["post-949441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-2032-olympic-games","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-brisbane-2032","tag-crocodile","tag-crocodile-sighting","tag-crocodiles","tag-david-crisafulli","tag-fitzroy-river","tag-golf-course","tag-olympics","tag-rockhampton","tag-rowing","tag-rowing-australia","tag-rowing-course","tag-rowing-venue","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/949441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=949441"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/949441\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/949442"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=949441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=949441"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=949441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}