Sydney, city, capital of the state of New South Wales, Australia. Located on Australia’s southeastern coast, Sydney is the country’s largest city and, with its magnificent harbour and strategic position, is one of the most important ports in the South Pacific. In the early 19th century, when it was still a small convict settlement and the first settlers had barely penetrated the interior, it had already established trade with the Pacific Islands, India, China, South Africa, and the Americas.
The first sight of Sydney, whether from the sea or the air, is always spectacular. Built on low hills surrounding a huge harbour with innumerable bays and inlets, the city is dominated by the bulk of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, one of the longest steel-arch bridges in the world, and the Opera House, with its glittering white shell-shaped roofs that seem to echo the sails of the many yachts in the adjacent harbour. The intricate confusion of water and buildings makes a striking impression either by day or by night.
Because of its history as a great port and its status as the site of the country’s main international air terminal, Sydney is perhaps the only city in Australia with a genuinely international atmosphere. Yet it remains a very Australian city, with a nice compromise between its British heritage and the South Seas attractions of its climate and environment. Area City of Sydney, 10.3 square miles (26.7 square km); Greater Sydney Statistical Area, 4,790 square miles (12,406 square km). Pop. (2001) City of Sydney, 128,544; Greater Sydney Statistical Area, 3,997,321; (2011) City of Sydney, 169,501; Greater Sydney Statistical Area, 4,429,034.
Sydney is, above all, a city for physical enjoyment. Few great cities in the world offer such unrivaled opportunities for swimming, surfing, sailing, and other outdoor sports. It is still possible to swim from several beaches in the harbour itself—though water pollution remains a concern—and the surf beaches to the north and south of the city are world famous. One of these, Bondi, is a short drive from the city centre. Some of the beaches to the north of the city, especially those on the Palm Beach peninsula and in Manly, are exceedingly beautiful. The surf is good, though variable, and made comparatively safe by voluntary lifesaving clubs, which provide guards and rescue equipment on all beaches throughout the summer months. Sydney is also a city of yachting. On any weekend the harbour is covered with sails of every shape and size, while Pittwater, an inlet 15 miles (25 km) to the north, is almost equally popular.
There are many golf courses and excellent facilities for football sports (including Australian rules football and rugby), cricket, and tennis, and the racecourse at Randwick is first class. Sydney Olympic Park was constructed for the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. The city worked to make the Games as environmentally responsible as possible: the park was built on reclaimed industrial wasteland; buildings were constructed by using recycled materials and were designed to conserve energy and water; and efforts were made to reduce and recycle waste. Facilities include Stadium Australia, with a capacity of 110,000 spectators.