Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games (known as the British Empire Games from 19301950, the
British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 19541966, and British Commonwealth Games
from 19701974) is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the
Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exception of 1942
and 1946, which were cancelled due to World War II, has taken place every four years since then.
The games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which also controls
the sporting programme and selects the host cities. A host city is selected for each edition. 18
cities in seven countries have hosted the event. Apart from many Olympic sports, the games also
include some sports that are played predominantly in Commonwealth countries, such as lawn
bowls and netball.
Although there are 53 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, 71 teams participate in
the Commonwealth Games, as a number of dependent territories compete under their own flag.
The four Home Nations of the United KingdomEngland, Scotland, Wales, and Northern
Irelandalso send separate teams. Only six countries have attended every Commonwealth
Games: Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales. Australia has been the
highest achieving team for twelve games, England for seven, and Canada for one.

History of the Games

A sporting competition bringing together the members of the British Empire was first
proposed by the John Astley Cooper in 1891, when he wrote an article in The Times suggesting a
"Pan-Britannic-Pan-Anglican Contest and Festival every four years as a means of increasing
goodwill and good understanding of the British Empire". The John Astley Cooper Committees
worldwide (e.g. Australia) helped Pierre de Coubertin to get his international Olympic Games off
the ground fast. In 1911, the Festival of the Empire was held at The Crystal Palace in London to
celebrate the coronation of King George V. As part of the festival, an Inter-Empire
Championships was held in which teams from Australia, Canada, South Africa, and the United
Kingdom competed in events such as boxing, wrestling, swimming, and athletics.
In 1928, Melville Marks Robinson of Canada was asked to organise the first British
Empire Games; these were held in 1930, in Hamilton, Ontario,and women competed in the
swimming events only. From 1934, women also competed in some athletics events.
The first Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were held alongside the Commonwealth
Games from 1962 to 1974. Athletes with a disability were then first included in exhibition events

at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, British Columbia, and, at the 2002
Commonwealth Games, they were included as full members of their national teams, making
them the first fully inclusive international multi-sport games. This meant that results were
included in the medal count.
The Empire Games flag was donated in 1931 by the British Empire Games Association of
Canada. The year and location of subsequent games were added until the 1950 games. The name
of the event was changed to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games and the flag was
retired as a result.
Editions of the Games

The first edition of the event was the 1930 British Empire Games in which 11 nations
participated. The quadrennial schedule of the games was interrupted by the Second World War
and the 1942 Games (set to be held in Montreal) and the 1946 Games were abandoned. The
games were revived in 1950 and underwent a name change four years later with the first British
Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1954. Over 1,000 athletes participated in the 1958 Games
as over thirty teams took part for the first time.
The Edmonton event marked a new high as almost 1,500 athletes from 46 countries took
part.
Nigeria was the first country to boycott the Commonwealth Games in 1978 in protest
over New Zealand's sporting contacts with South Africa. Participation at the 1986 Games was
affected by a boycott by 32 African and Caribbean nations in protest to British Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher's refusal to condemn sporting contacts of Apartheid era South Africa in 1985,
but the Games rebounded and continued to grow thereafter. The 1998 Commonwealth Games in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia saw the sporting programme grow from 10 to 15 sports as team sports
were allowed for the first time. Participation also reached new levels as over 3500 athletes
represented 70 teams at the event. At the Games in Melbourne in 2006, over 4000 athletes took
part in sporting competitions.
The three nations to have hosted the games the most times are Australia (5), Canada (4)
and New Zealand (3). Furthermore, six editions have taken place in the countries within the
United Kingdom (Scotland 3, England 2 and Wales 1), twice in Asia (Malaysia 1 and India 1)
and once in the Caribbean (Jamaica 1). Two cities have held the games on multiple occasions:
Auckland (1950 and 1990), and Edinburgh (1970, 1986 and some events in 2014).

Approved sports

There are a total of 22 sports (with two multi-disciplinary sports) and a further seven
para-sports which are approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation. They are categorised
into three types. Core sports must be included on each programme. A number of optional sports
may be picked by the host nation, which may include some team sports such as basketball.
Recognised sports are sports which have been approved by the CGF but which are deemed to
need expansion; host nations may not pick these sports for their programme until the CGF's
requirements are fulfilled.
Sport
Archery
Athletics
Badminton
Basketball
Billiards
Boxing
Canoeing
Cricket
Cycling
Diving
Fencing
Field hockey
Football
Golf
Gymnastics (Artistic)
Gymnastics (Rhythmic)
Handball
Judo
Lawn bowls
Life saving
Netball
Rowing
Rugby league
Rugby sevens
Sailing
Shooting
Softball

Type
Optional
Core
Core
Optional
Recognised
Core
Recognised
Recognised
Optional
Optional
Recognised
Core
Recognised
Recognised
Optional
Optional
Recognised
Optional
Core
Recognised
Core
Optional
Recognised
Core
Recognised
Optional
Recognised

Years
1982, 2010
1911present
1966present
2006, 2018
Never
1911present
Never[12]
1998
1934present
1930present
19501970
1998present
Never
Never
1978, 1990present
1978, 1990present
1930
1990, 2002, 2014
1930present (except 1966)
Never
1998present
1930, 19381962, 1986
Never
1998present
Never
1966, 1974present
Never

Sport
Squash
Swimming
Synchronized swimming
Table tennis
Taekwondo
Ten-Pin Bowling
Tennis
Triathlon
Volleyball
Water Polo
Weightlifting
Wrestling

Type
Core
Core
Optional
Optional
Optional
Recognised
Optional
Optional
Recognised
Recognised
Core
Optional

Years
1998present
1911present
1986-2006
2002present
Never
1998
2010
2002, 2006, 2014
Never
1950
1950present
19111986, 1994, 2002, 2010-present