Matilda during the 1982 Commonwealth Games opening ceremony

Matilda was the mascot of the 1982 Commonwealth Games held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

Matilda was a model of a kangaroo built on top of a forklift. Standing over 13 metres tall and weighing six tonnes, it could turn its head, its ears could wriggle, and eyes could wink and blink. Its pouch doubled as a door, which opened during the opening ceremony to let out 20 children, dressed as joeys, who ran out two by two for a trampoline display.[1][2]

After the games, it ended up at the entrance to Cade's County Waterpark on the Gold Coast. In 2009 it was sold to Puma Energy who applied to re-erect it at the Matilda petrol station on the Gold Coast Highway in Tugun; however, after the Gold Coast City Council deemed it breached its planning regulations, it was relocated to the Matilda fuel station on the Bruce Highway at Kybong.[3]

It is now located at the Traveston Service Centre (26°20′29″S 152°43′49″E / 26.34147°S 152.73040°E / -26.34147; 152.73040 (Matilda (mascot))), a traveller's rest stop located on the Bruce Highway.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ Mascot Commonwealth Games Australia
  2. ^ Commonwealth Games: Matilda enjoys the quiet life after shining in spotlight as 1982 mascot Archived 2018-04-05 at the Wayback Machine ABC News 4 April 2018
  3. ^ "What happened to Matilda from the 1982 Commonwealth Games?". ABC News. 3 April 2018. Archived from the original on 29 September 2023. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
  4. ^ "Australia has hosted more Commonwealth Games than any other nation. So what happened to all the mascots?". ABC News. 23 July 2023. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
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