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The state of Victoria, Australia has been named host of the next Commonwealth Games, with the quadrennial multi-sport event set to take place across the state’s 5 regions of Melbourne, Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland. Each hub will have its own athlete village, and together they will deliver a multi-sport program in world-class regional sporting venues, per the official bid’s release.
The announcement comes with the 2022 edition just around the corner. Competition begins in Birmingham, England on July 28th, 2022.
A core group of 16 sports has been agreed upon between the State of Victoria, the Commonwealth Games Federation and Commonwealth Games Australia, although more sports may be later added to the program.
The initial lineup includes the following, alongside the proposed host area:
However, the lineup of sports was not revealed without controversy, as the nation of India is questioning why their strong suits of shooting and wrestling have been excluded. The list of sports are not written in stone at this time, as the Commonwealth Games Federation expressed, “There will be a phased approach in creating the sports programme for Victoria 2026. An initial 16 sports have been put forward for the Games, with further sports to be added later this year.”
As we reported in 2021, however, as part of the new Strategic Roadmap, the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has revealed just two compulsory sports for future Games – athletics (track & field) and swimming. With just two core sports, the idea is that future hosts will have the ability to propose entirely new sports relevant to their nation or culture.
The Gold Coast, Australia served as host of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, where the host nation topped the overall medal table across all sports, grabbing a total of 108 medals, including 80 gold. Specific to swimming, Australia still held its own, topping the medal table handily with a total of 73, more than double what runners-up England tallied at the competition.