Fitness Cartel Mackay Where The Big Names Train

Photo credit: Hannah McNamara  

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There was plenty of action on the cricket pitch when Mackay made sporting history, but some of Australia’s biggest sporting stars were putting in the hard yards long before the first ball was bowled.

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On Thursday 20th August, prior to the big game over the weekend, members of the Australian men’s cricket team made Fitness Cartel Mackay their training base while in the region for Mackay’s historic first-ever men’s Test match against Bangladesh.

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For a regional city, having some of the country’s best cricketers walk through the doors of a local gym is no small feat. For Fitness Cartel, however, it was another strong endorsement of what the facility has set out to deliver – a premier, world-class training and wellness centre right here in Mackay.

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The landmark Test match, held from 22-26 August 2026, brought international cricket to the Great Barrier Reef Arena as Australia faced Bangladesh in the second match of the NRMA Insurance Northern Australia Test Series.

And while the players took centre stage at the arena, Fitness Cartel provided a place to train, prepare and recover behind the scenes, with its renowned wellness centre offering facilities including plunge pools, a hot rock sauna and compression boots designed to support recovery and performance.

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The visit came with an impressive result on the field, too, with Australia bouncing back from its Darwin defeat to secure a convincing innings-and-51-run victory over Bangladesh in Mackay.

Bangladesh struggled with the bat, scoring just 64 runs in its first innings before being dismissed for 95 in the second. Mitchell Starc was outstanding, claiming 10 wickets for 51 runs across the match, while Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon also took three wickets each as Australia wrapped up the Test in just over two days.

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For Fitness Cartel Mackay co-founder Michael James, welcoming members of the Australian cricket team was a “tremendous honour”, particularly given the calibre of athletes using the facility.

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“To have the best players in the country, in our national sport, choose to look after their bodies at Fitness Cartel while they’re here for the Test match is a tremendous privilege,” Mr James said.

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“It just makes me very, very proud.”

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The visit also added another chapter to Fitness Cartel’s growing reputation among elite sporting teams, having previously welcomed professional footy teams and other high-level athletes through its doors.

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For Mr James, seeing Australia’s cricketers train and recover in Mackay demonstrated that world-class performance facilities do not have to be confined to capital cities or major sporting hubs.

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“We’ve created what I would describe as affordable luxury,” he said.

“We’re bringing world-class facilities to Mackay, but they don’t have to be exclusive to world-class performers.”

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“This facility is for everyday people, often people who are just starting out, right through to some of the best players in cricket in the world.”

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And that is perhaps the real win for Mackay.

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To have international sporting stars training and recovering locally is a reflection of how far the region’s facilities have come, and Fitness Cartel is helping put Mackay on the map as a place where elite athletes can prepare, perform and recover at a world-class standard.

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At the same time, that same training floor and wellness centre remains available to the everyday Mackay community.

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From Australian cricket stars preparing for a historic Test to locals simply chasing their next personal best, Fitness Cartel is proving that a world-class training and recovery environment can exist, and thrive, right here in the region.

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