Greater Shepparton welcomes 12 teams and their supporters for the 2019 Australian Country Championships which is the first national hockey championships held in the region in the last two decades.
Greater Shepparton City Council Mayor Councillor Kim O'Keeffe said it was wonderful for Greater Shepparton to be able to host another fabulous national event in our region.
"It is a great accomplishment to host such a prestigious event with the recent redevelopment of the new $21 million Shepparton Sports City precinct enabling us to host amazing events such as these to bring so many people from around Australia to play hockey in Greater Shepparton," Cr O'Keefe said.
"These events strengthen our reputation as the leading sporting and events capital of regional Australia and will keep our local visitor economy strong and businesses thriving with visitors here for the next eight days. This creates a major boost for our accommodation, hospitality, entertainment, dining, retail and tourism attraction sectors."
"We look forward to partnering with Hockey Australia and the Goulburn Valley Hockey Association to deliver a first class event for all our visitors."
Hockey Australia CEO Matt Favier said the event was a great celebration for hockey in Australia.
"The game has significant regional roots and Shepparton is a great example of that, with champions such as the 1996 Atlanta Olympic gold medal Hockeyroos player Louise Dobson calling Shepparton home," Mr Favier said.
"We cannot thank our partner Greater Shepparton City Council enough for making the year's event happen along with the Goulburn Valley Hockey Association for their support."
The Country Championships will be played from August 3 – 11 at Shepparton Sports City precinct with six men's and women's teams representing Western Australia, New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria, Queensland and the Australian Defence Force.
