(L-R) Casey Frederickson, Luke Taylor, Travis Callaghan, Nick Bamber, and Tahni Jansen

Preparations for Gold Coast Airport’s $300M terminal redevelopment, Project LIFT, will take a back seat this weekend as the Project LIFT team swap the runway for their running shoes to compete in the Gold Coast Airport Marathon.

This year marks the 14th consecutive year that Gold Coast Airport (GCA) has supported the event as the naming rights sponsor, and the 14th year airport staff have taken part in the Corporate Team Challenge.

The Planning and Projects team responsible for the delivery of Project LIFT, have entered six team members across a variety of events.

Project Director for Project LIFT, Nick Bamber, said it is important to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

“I have worked as part of the Project LIFT team for over a year now, so this is the perfect opportunity to get out of the office and join the team on the track.

“So far, 2016 has been a busy year for Gold Coast Airport, and with the construction commencement of Project LIFT just around the corner, all staff at Gold Coast Airport are working very hard.

“Despite this busy workload, it is important that we put our work duties aside and find the time to focus on family, friends and fitness.

“This will be my first time running in an event at the Gold Coast Airport Marathon, and I will be joined by my wife Sue, and daughter Izzy, who are also competing,” Mr Bamber said.

Joining Nick and family over race weekend are other projects team members Paul Callaghan – Civil Technical Officer, Casey Frederickson – Graduate Engineer, Luke Taylor – Junior Technical Officer, Tahni Jansen – Project Manager and Senior Project Manager Travis Callaghan – who will have his wife and three children join him in competing.

As part of Gold Coast Airport’s sponsorship of the event, a Project LIFT activation will be in place at the ASICS Sport & Leisure Expo, providing locals and visitors the opportunity to learn more about the terminal redevelopment.

Across the business, more than 75 Gold Coast Airport staff, family and friends will take to the starting line this weekend in different events.

Having previously competed in the Suncorp Bank 5.7km Challenge, the Southern Cross University 10km Run and the ASICS Half Marathon, Gold Coast Airport’s Chief Operating Officer, Marion Charlton, said that she is pleased to see that a large number of Gold Coast Airport staff are again this year taking up the challenge and embracing an active lifestyle.

“Being part of the Gold Coast Airport Marathon has been really positive for our team, with a large number of our staff competing themselves or with their families and friends as part of the Gold Coast Airport team.

“2016 will go down in history as one of the busiest years on record for the GCA team with multiple major projects underway, so to have so many staff still investing time and effort in preparing for the event, is really inspiring.

“Over the years, the event has helped build on our positive corporate culture, and has promoted a healthy lifestyle – which is something we want for our team. There is also a degree of competitiveness in the office around marathon time, which is hilarious!” Ms Charlton said.

Events Management Queensland Chairman, Kerry Watson, said the longstanding association between Gold Coast Airport and Gold Coast Airport Marathon has been an outstanding success, as well as a major part of the growth of the event since 2003.

“The support of the Gold Coast Airport has been paramount in this event’s development over the past 14 years, from a race involving 11,000 participants through to today’s version – a world class event attracting over 28,000,” Mr Watson said.

“This affiliation has assisted in the Gold Coast Airport Marathon holding an IAAF Road Race Gold Label, placing it amongst the best marathons in the world, including New York, Berlin, Tokyo and London.

“In addition to the partnership, it’s great to see the Gold Coast Airport staff, family and friends supporting the event on race weekend!”

Gold Coast Airport is proud to be a part of the Gold Coast Airport Marathon’s ongoing success in driving a significant number of intrastate, interstate and international visitors to the region each year.