Adelaide 500 Supercar Race Locked in for 5 Years Despite Declared Climate Emergency

The Adelaide 500 Supercars Championship at Adelaide Parklands Circuit in Adelaide, Australia on March 2, 2019 Photo by Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images

The South Australian (SA) government and Supercars Australia have signed a deal to lock in the Adelaide 500 as the final race of the Supercars Championship for the next five years despite the premier declaring a climate emergency earlier in the month.

Known as the Clipsal 500 Adelaide up until 2017, the 500 had already been secured for 2022, but this new agreement will see the iconic race held as the finale to the championship from Dec.1 to 4 until 2026.

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas called it a historic moment for motorsport in the state now that the race has been secured for at least the next five years.

“I have every confidence hosting the final race in the Supercars Championship will become an integral part of the sport’s calendar in the same way the season opener in Adelaide used to be,” he said.

In 2019, the event attracted more than 250,000 people, of whom 15,000 were interstate or international visitors, and generated at least $45 million in economic activity for the state, but after the 2020 race, the former government canned the event, citing declining crowd numbers.

Malinauskas then made it part of his election campaign to bring the 500 back if he was elected premier in March, which he was.

Declaration of a Climate Emergency

Soon after becoming premier, Malinauskas announced that the race had been reinstated but then, on June 1, declared a climate emergency, making SA the first Australian state to do so.

“I think South Australians will be refreshed and renewed by seeing a parliament simply acknowledging the truth,” Malinauskas said.

“I mean, we’ve got an extraordinary challenge on our hands as a state, as a country, as a global community to confront climate change, and when you acknowledge the truth, you can start to address it.”

Premier of South Australia Peter Malinauskas at a press conference during a visit to Cabra Dominican College in Adelaide, Australia on May 20, 2022. Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

SA  climate minister Susan Close agreed that the state needed to “focus on supporting projects which are climate-friendly and encourage growth in resilient low-carbon businesses.”

“The Malinauskas government will position South Australia to take advantage of the global need to rapidly reduce emissions,” she said.

Senator for South Australia Calls out the Contradiction

Sentor for South Australia, Alex Antic, said, “it’s pretty hard to explain” why the Adelaide 500 supercar event will be going ahead despite the state government’s declaration of a climate emergency.

Speaking to Sky News earlier in the month, Antic said that something must have transitioned between the time the announcement to reinstate the race was made and the June 1 passing of a motion by both houses of parliament to declare the climate emergency.

Senator Alex Antic in the Australian Senate chamber. Image supplied to the Epoch Times by Senator Antic's office

“If we were in an emergency, you wouldn’t think that it would be the highest priority to bring back a gas-guzzling, diesel-powered V8 race to SA,” he said, adding that he loves the race, but it doesn’t stand to reason.

“I’m starting to think that their “climate emergency” declaration was nothing more than a cheap stunt,” he said on social media.

The Epoch Times reached out to both the premier and leader of the opposition for comment, but did not receive a response.