Australia’s best events and strongest achievements in the were recognised and celebrated at the Australian Event Awards ceremony on Wednesday night across the nation.

Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth all had a chance to host the awards, with video link-up technology allowing the events industry across the nation to celebrate with the finalists and winners, even if they were in a different state.

Winners of the Best Event categories included Splendour in the Grass 2019, Paralympics Australia Infinite Possibilities Gala 2019 and Highway to Hell: Perth Festival 2020 Closing Event among others.

There were also eight Achievement finalists crowned as winners last night, including Fourth Wall for EventCast, Melbourne Cricket Club and EventsAIR.

The headline categories saw individual and company finalists such as Jessica Ducrou nominated by Secret Sounds Group, Hannah Milligan nominated by The Company We Keep, Great Big Events, and Phoenix Creative Management walk away with trophies.

This year’s ceremony also saw the comeback of the Australian Event of the Year category.

Any Best Event category winners were automatically nominated for Australian Event of the Year and, for 2020, the winner of Best Sporting Event, the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020, walked away as the Australian Event of 2019/2020.

The awards ceremony saw event professionals from all sectors come together to enjoy a bit of mystery and sparkle at the black-tie shindig.

Live performances from RatPack Reloaded, Frolic & Follies, Michael Boyd the Illusionist, ROCKIT, Victor Martinez Parada, Mick Lindsay and Gospo Collective entertained attendees throughout the evening through song, dance, magic and more.

ASM Global’s APAC chairman and CEO was revealed as the winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award just prior to the event.

Check out the full list of winners for this year’s Australian Event Awards below:

Best Sporting Event

ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020

Best Tourism Event

Splendour in the Grass 2019, New South Wales

Best Charity or Cause-Related Event

Paralympics Australia Infinite Possibilities Gala 2019, This Space, New South Wales

Best Congress or Conference

Asia Pacific Cities Summit and Mayors Forum 2019, Carillon Conference Management Pty Limited, Queensland

Best Cultural, Arts or Music Event

Highway to Hell: Perth Festival 2020 Closing Event, Western Australia

Best Corporate Event

Salesforce World Tour Reimagined 2020, The Company We Keep, New South Wales 

Best Exhibition, Trade or Consumer Show

PAX Australia 2019, Reed Exhibitions, Victoria

Coates Hire Best Community Event

North Australian Festival of Arts 2019, Townsville City Council, Queensland 

Best Small Event

Island Whale Festival 2019, Destination Phillip Island Inc, Victoria

Best New Event

Outback Queensland Masters 2019, Golf Australia, Cre8ion, Weatherall Golf and Krista Hauritz Tourism and Events, Queensland

Best Regional Event

Travelling Light 2019, illuminart Australia, South Australia

Best Achievement in Design, Look or Theming

Public Art Australia for their work on Océan en Voie D’illumination 2019/2020

Best Achievement in Marketing, Communication or Sponsorship

Krista Hauritz Tourism & Events for their work on Stanthorpe Apple and Grape Festival 2020

Best Technical Achievement or Innovation

EvenstAIR for their work on 2019/2020 Congresses and Events 

Best Achievement in Venue Management

Melbourne Cricket Club for their work at the MCG

Best New Product

Fourth Wall for EventCast

Best Event Service

Event & Sports Projects Australia Pty Ltd for their work in Group Ticketing & Transport Operations and Communications Service

Best Achievement in Event Education or Training

Australian Marketing Institute for their Virtual Event Best Practice & Ideas Course

Best Achievement in Entertainment

Michael Cassel Group for their work on The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo – Sydney 2019 

Young Achiever of the Year

Hannah Milligan nominated by The Company We Keep

Event Producer of the Year

Jessica Ducrou nominated by Secret Sounds Group

Small Event Management Company of the Year

Phoenix Creative Management

Event Management Company of the Year

Great Big Events