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Commonwealth Games
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Commonwealth Games
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The Commonwealth Games are an international multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and has taken place every four years since then.^[1] The Commonwealth Games were known as the British Empire Games from 1930 to 1950, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970 to 1974. It is the world's first multi-sport event which inducted equal number of women’s and men’s medal events and was implemented recently in the 2018 Commonwealth Games.^[2]

Their creation was inspired by the Inter-Empire Championships, as a part of the Festival of Empire, which were held in London, United Kingdom in 1911. Melville Marks Robinson founded the games as the British Empire Games which were first hosted in Hamilton in 1930.^[3] During the 20th and 21st centuries, the evolution of the games movement has resulted in several changes to the Commonwealth Games. Some of these adjustments include the creation of the Commonwealth Winter Games for snow and ice sports for the commonwealth athletes,^[4] the Commonwealth Paraplegic Games for commonwealth athletes with a disability^[5] and the Commonwealth Youth Games for commonwealth athletes aged 14 to 18. The first edition of the winter games and paraplegic games were held in 1958 and 1962 respectively, with their last edition held in 1966 and 1974 respectively and the first youth games were held in 2000. The 1942 and 1946 Commonwealth Games were cancelled because of the second world war.^[6]

The Commonwealth Games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which also controls the sporting programme and selects the host cities. The games movement consists of international sports federations (IFs), Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs), and organising committees for each specific Commonwealth Games. There are several rituals and symbols, such as the Commonwealth Games flag and Queen's Baton, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. Over 5,000 athletes compete at the Commonwealth Games in more than 15 different sports and more than 250 events. The first, second, and third-place finishers in each event receive Commonwealth Games medals: gold, silver, and bronze, respectively. Apart from many Olympic sports, the games also include some sports that are played predominantly in Commonwealth countries but which are not part of the Olympic programme, such as lawn bowls, netball and squash.^[7]

Although there are currently 53 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, 71 teams currently participate in the Commonwealth Games, as a number of dependent territories compete under their own flags. The four Home Nations of the United Kingdom—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—also send separate teams.

Nineteen cities in nine countries (counting England, Wales, and Scotland separately) have hosted the event. Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games five times (1938, 1962, 1982, 2006 and 2018); this is more times than any other nation. Two cities have hosted Commonwealth Games more than once: Auckland (1950, 1990) and Edinburgh (1970, 1986).

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.

The most recent Commonwealth Games were held in Gold Coast from 4 to 15 April 2018. The next Commonwealth Games are to be held in Birmingham from 27 July to 7 August 2022.

History of the Games

A sporting competition bringing together the members of the British Empire was first proposed by John Astley Cooper in 1900, 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". John Astley Cooper Committees were formed worldwide (e.g. Australia) and helped Pierre de Coubertin to get his international Olympic Games off the ground.^[8] In 1911, the Festival of the Empire was held at The Crystal Palace in London to celebrate the coronation of George V. As part of the Festival of the Empire, an Inter-Empire Championships were held in which teams from Australia, Canada, South Africa, and the United Kingdom competed in athletics, boxing, wrestling and swimming events.

Canada won the championships and was gifted a silver cup which was 2 feet 6 inch high and weighed 340 oz (9.6 kg). It was gifted by Lord Lonsdale. However, the 1911 championships were followed by the first world war which happened from 1914 to 1918. The organisers had lost hopes of hosting such sporting events for the empire athletes.

Melville Marks Robinson, who went to the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam to serve as the manager of the Canadian track and field team, strongly lobbied for the proposal of organising the first British Empire Games in Hamilton in 1930.

Editions of the Games

During the 20th century

British Empire Games

The 1930 British Empire Games were the first of what later become known as the Commonwealth Games, and were held in Hamilton, in the province of Ontario in Canada from August 16–23, 1930.

Eleven countries sent a total of 400 athletes to the Hamilton Games. The opening and closing ceremonies as well as athletics took place at Civic Stadium. The participant nations were Australia, Bermuda, British Guyana, Canada, England, Northern Ireland, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa and Wales. The Hamilton Games featured six sports: athletics, boxing, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving and wrestling and ran at a cost of $97,973. Women competed in only the aquatic events.^[9] Canadian triple jumper Gordon Smallacombe won the first ever gold medal in the history of the Games.^[3]

Opening ceremony of the 1938 British Empire Games at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

The 1934 British Empire Games were the second of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, held in London, England. The host city was London, with the main venue at Wembley Park, although the track cycling events were in Manchester. The 1934 Games had originally been awarded to Johannesburg, but were given to London instead because of serious concerns about prejudice against black and Asian athletes in South Africa. Seventeen national teams took part, including the Irish Free State (the only Games in which they did take part) and new participants Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Southern Rhodesia and Trinidad and Tobago.^[10]

The 1938 British Empire Games were the third British Empire Games, which were held in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. They were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary (150 years since the foundation of British settlement in Australia). Held in the southern hemisphere for the first time, the III Games opening ceremony took place at the famed Sydney Cricket Ground in front of 40,000 spectators. Fifteen nations participated down under at the Sydney Games involving a total of 464 athletes and 43 officials. Fiji and Ceylon made their debuts. Seven sports were featured in the Sydney Games – athletics, boxing, cycling, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving and wrestling.^[11]

The 1950 British Empire Games were the fourth edition and was held in Auckland, New Zealand after a 12-year gap from the third edition of the games. The fourth games were originally awarded to Montreal, Canada and were to be held in 1942 but were cancelled due to the Second World War. The opening ceremony at Eden Park was attended by 40,000 spectators, while nearly 250,000 people attended the Auckland Games. Twelve countries sent a total of 590 athletes to Auckland. Malaya and Nigeria made their first appearances.^[12]

British Empire and Commonwealth Games

Statue in Vancouver commemorating the "Miracle Mile" between Roger Bannister and John Landy

The fifth edition of the games, the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, were held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. These were the first games since the name change from British Empire Games took effect in 1952. The fifth edition of the Games placed Vancouver on a world stage and featured memorable sporting moments as well as outstanding entertainment, technical innovation and cultural events. The ‘Miracle Mile’, as it became known, saw both the gold medallist, Roger Bannister of England and silver medallist John Landy of Australia, run sub-four minute races in an event that was televised live across the world for the first time. Northern Rhodesia and Pakistan made their debuts and both performed well, winning eight and six medals respectively.^[13]

3pence British stamp with theme of 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, Cardiff, Wales

The 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Cardiff, Wales. The sixth edition of the games marked the largest sporting event ever held in Wales and it was the smallest country ever to host a British Empire and Commonwealth Games. Cardiff had to wait 12 years longer than originally scheduled to become host of the Games, as the 1946 event was cancelled because of the Second World War. The Cardiff Games introduced the Queen's Baton Relay, which has been conducted as a prelude to every British Empire and Commonwealth Games ever since. Thirty-five nations sent a total of 1,122 athletes and 228 officials to the Cardiff Games and 23 countries and dependencies won medals, including for the first time, Singapore, Ghana, Kenya and the Isle of Man.^[14]

The 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Perth, Western Australia, Australia. Thirty-five countries sent a total of 863 athletes and 178 officials to Perth. Jersey was among the medal winners for the first time, while British Honduras, Dominica, Papua and New Guinea and St Lucia all made their inaugural Games appearances. Aden also competed by special invitation. Sarawak, North Borneo and Malaya competed for the last time before taking part in 1966 under the Malaysian flag. In addition, Rhodesia and Nyasaland competed in the Games as an entity for the first and only time.^[15]

The 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica. This was the first time that the Games had been held outside the so-called White Dominions. Thirty-four nations (including South Arabia) competed in the Kingston Games sending a total of 1,316 athletes and officials.^[16]

British Commonwealth Games

The 1970 British Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland. This was the first time the name British Commonwealth Games was adopted, the first time metric units rather than imperial units were used in events, the first time the games were held in Scotland and also the first time that HM Queen Elizabeth II attended in her capacity as Head of the Commonwealth.^[17]

The 1974 British Commonwealth Games were held in Christchurch, New Zealand. The Games were officially named "the friendly games". Following the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics, the tenth games at Christchurch were the first multi-sport event to place the safety of participants and spectators as its uppermost requirement. Security guards surrounded the athlete’s village and there was an exceptionally high-profile police presence. Only 22 countries succeeded in winning medals from the total haul of 374 medals on offer, but first time winners included Western Samoa, Lesotho and Swaziland.^[18]

Commonwealth Games

The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. This event was the first to bear the current day name of the Commonwealth Games and also marked a new high as almost 1,500 athletes from 46 countries took part. They were boycotted by Nigeria in protest of New Zealand's sporting contacts with apartheid-era South Africa, as well as by Uganda in protest of alleged Canadian hostility towards the government of Idi Amin.^[19][20]

Opening ceremony of the 1982 Commonwealth Games at Brisbane, Australia

The 1982 Commonwealth Games were held in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Forty-six nations participated in the Brisbane Games with a new record total of 1,583 athletes and 571 officials. As hosts, Australia headed the medal table leading the way ahead of England, Canada, Scotland and New Zealand respectively. Zimbabwe made its first appearance at the Games, having earlier competed as Southern Rhodesia and as part of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.^[21]

The 1986 Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland and were the second Games to be held in Edinburgh. Participation at the 1986 Games was affected by a boycott by 32 African, Asian and Caribbean nations in protest of 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. Twenty-six nations did attend the second Edinburgh Games and sent a total of 1,662 athletes and 461 officials.^[22]

The 1990 Commonwealth Games were held in Auckland, New Zealand. It was the fourteenth Commonwealth Games, the third to be hosted by New Zealand and Auckland’s second. A new record of 55 nations participated in the second Auckland Games sending 2,826 athletes and officials.^[23] Pakistan returned to the Commonwealth in 1989 after withdrawing in 1972, and competed in the 1990 Games after an absence of twenty years.^[24]

The 1994 Commonwealth Games were held in Victoria, British Columbia, the fourth to take place in Canada. The games marked South Africa's return to the Commonwealth Games following the apartheid era, and over 30 years since the country last competed in the Games in 1958. Namibia made its Commonwealth Games debut. It was also Hong Kong's last appearance at the games before the transfer of sovereignty from Britain to China. Sixty-three nations sent 2,557 athletes and 914 officials.^[25]

The 1998 Commonwealth Games were held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. For the first time in its 68-year history, the Commonwealth Games were held in Asia. The sixteenth games were also the first Games to feature team sports - an overwhelming success that added large numbers to both participant and TV audience numbers. A new record of 70 countries sent a total of 5,065 athletes and officials to the Kuala Lumpur Games. The top five countries in the medal standing were Australia, England, Canada, Malaysia and South Africa. Nauru also achieved an impressive haul of three gold medals. Cameroon, Mozambique and Kiribati debuted.^[26]

During the 21st century

The 2002 Commonwealth Games were held in Manchester, England. The 2002 Games were to be hosted in England to coincide with the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II, head of the Commonwealth. In terms of sports and events, the 2002 Games were until the 2010 edition the largest Commonwealth Games in history featuring 281 events across 17 sports. The final medal tally was led by Australia, followed by host England and Canada. The 2002 Commonwealth Games had set a new benchmark for hosting the Commonwealth Games and for cities wishing to bid for them with a heavy emphasis on legacy.^[27]

Athletics at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) during the 2006 Commonwealth Games, Melbourne, Australia

The 2006 Commonwealth Games were held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The only difference between the 2006 games and the 2002 games was the absence of Zimbabwe, which withdrew from the Commonwealth of Nations. For the first time in the history of the Games the Queen's Baton visited every single Commonwealth nation and territory taking part in the Games, a journey of 180,000 km (112,500 miles). Over 4000 athletes took part in the sporting competitions. Again the Top 3 on the medal table is Australia, followed by England and Canada.^[28]

The 2010 Commonwealth Games were held in Delhi, India. The Games cost $11 billion and are the most expensive Commonwealth Games ever. It was the first time that the Commonwealth Games were held in India,also the first time that a Commonwealth Republic hosted the games and the second time they were held in Asia after Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 1998. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events. The final medal tally was led by Australia. The host nation India achieved its best performance ever in any sporting event, finishing second overall.^[29]Rwanda made its Games debut.^[30]

The 2014 Commonwealth Games were held in Glasgow, Scotland. It was the largest multi-sport event ever held in Scotland with around 4,950 athletes from 71 different nations and territories competing in 18 different sports, outranking the 1970 and 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh, capital city of Scotland. Usain Bolt competed in the 4×100 metres relay of the 2014 Commonwealth Games and set a Commonwealth Games record with his teammates.^[31] The Games received acclaim for their organisation, attendance, and the public enthusiasm of the people of Scotland, with Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper hailing them as "the standout games in the history of the movement".^[32]

The 2018 Commonwealth Games were held in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, the fifth time Australia hosted the Games. There were an equal number of events for men and women, the first time in history that a major multi-sport event had equality in terms of events.^[33][34]

The 2022 Commonwealth Games will be held in Birmingham, England. They will be the third Commonwealth Games to be hosted in England following London 1934 and Manchester 2002.^[35]

The three nations to have hosted the Commonwealth 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)).^[1]

Paraplegic Games

Athletes of the 1962 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games at Perth

The Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were an international, multi-sport event involving athletes with a disability from the Commonwealth countries. The event was sometimes referred to as the Paraplegic Empire Games and British Commonwealth Paraplegic Games. Athletes were generally those with spinal injuries or polio. The event was first held in 1962 and disestablished in 1974.^[36] The Games were held in the country hosting the Commonwealth Games for able-bodied athletes. The countries that had hosted the Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were Australia, Jamaica, Scotland and New Zealand in 1962, 1966, 1970 and 1974 respectively. Six countries — Australia, England, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales — had been represented at all Commonwealth Paraplegic Games. Australia and England had been the top-ranking nation two times each: 1962, 1974 and 1966, 1970 respectively.

Inclusion of Para-sports

Athletes with a disability were then first included in exhibition events at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, British Columbia,^[37] and, at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, England, 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.^[38]

During the 2007 General Assembly of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) at Colombo, Sri Lanka, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and CGF signed a co-operative agreement to ensure a formal institutional relationship between the two bodies and secure the future participation of elite athletes with a disability (EAD) in future Commonwealth Games.

IPC President Philip Craven said during the General Assembly:

The co-operation agreement outlined the strong partnership between the IPC and the CGF. It recognized the IPC as the organization for overseeing the co-ordination and delivery of the Commonwealth Games EAD sports programme and committed both organizations to work together in supporting the growth of the Paralympic and Commonwealth Games Movements.^[39]

Winter Games

St. Moritz, the venue for all three Games from 1958-66

The Commonwealth Winter Games were a multi-sport event comprising winter sports, last held in 1966. Three editions of the Games have been staged. The Winter Games were designed as a counterbalance to the Commonwealth Games, which focuses on summer sports, to accompany the Winter Olympics and Summer Olympic Games. The winter Games were founded by T.D. Richardson.^[40] The 1958 Commonwealth Winter Games were held in St. Moritz, Switzerland and was the inaugural games for the winter edition.^[41][42] The 1962 Games were also held in St. Moritz, complementing the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Perth, Australia, and the 1966 event was held in St. Moritz as well, following which the idea was discontinued.^[43]

Youth Games

The Commonwealth Youth Games are an international multi-sport event organized by the Commonwealth Games Federation. The games are held every four years with the current Commonwealth Games format. The Commonwealth Games Federation discussed the idea of a Millennium Commonwealth Youth Games in 1997. In 1998 the concept was agreed on for the purpose of providing a Commonwealth multi-sport event for young people born in the calendar year 1986 or later. The first version was held in Edinburgh, Scotland from 10 to 14 August 2000. The age limitation of the athletes is 14 to 18.^[44]

Commonwealth Games Federation

Headquarters of the CGF at the Commonwealth House (centre) in London

The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) is the international organisation responsible for the direction and control of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games, and is the foremost authority in matters relating to the games.^[45] The Commonwealth House in London, United Kingdom hosts the headquarters of CGF.^[46] The Commonwealth House also hosts the headquarters of the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Local Government Forum.^[47][48]

The Commonwealth Games Movement is made of three major elements:

• 
  International Federations (IFs) are the governing bodies that supervise a sport at an international level. For example, the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) is the international governing body for basketball.^[49]


• 
  Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs) represent and regulate the Commonwealth Games Movement within each country. For example, the Commonwealth Games England (CGE) is the CGA of England. There are currently 70 CGAs recognised by the CGF.^[50]


• Organising Committees for the Commonwealth Games (OCCWGs) are temporary committees responsible for the organisation of each Commonwealth Games. OCCWGs are dissolved after each Games once the final report is delivered to the CGF.

English is the official language of the Commonwealth. The other language used at each Commonwealth Games is the language of the host country (or languages, if a country has more than one official language apart from English). Every proclamation (such as the announcement of each country during the parade of nations in the opening ceremony) is spoken in these two (or more) languages, or the main depending on whether the host country is an English speaking country.

Queen's Baton Relay

The 2002 Queen's Jubilee Baton Relay

The Queen's Baton Relay, is a relay around the world held prior to the beginning of the Commonwealth Games. The Baton carries a message from the Head of the Commonwealth, currently Queen Elizabeth II. The Relay traditionally begins at Buckingham Palace in London as a part of the city's Commonwealth Day festivities. The Queen entrusts the baton to the first relay runner. At the Opening Ceremony of the Games, the final relay runner hands the baton back to the Queen or her representative, who reads the message aloud to officially open the Games. The Queen's Baton Relay is similar to the Olympic Torch Relay.^[51]

The Relay was introduced at the 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, Wales. Up until, and including, the 1994 Games, the Relay only went through England and the host nation. The Relay for the 1998 Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia was the first to travel to other nations of the Commonwealth. The Gold Coast 2018 Queen’s Baton Relay was the longest in Commonwealth Games history. Covering 230,000 km over 388 days, the Baton made its way through the six Commonwealth regions of Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Oceania. For the first time, the Queen's Baton was presented at the Commonwealth Youth Games during its sixth edition in 2017 which were held in Nassau, Bahamas.^[52]

Ceremonies

Opening

Opening ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games at Melbourne

Various elements frame the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games. This ceremony takes place before the events have occurred. The ceremony typically starts with the hoisting of the host country's flag and a performance of its national anthem. The flag of the Commonwealth Games Federation, flag of the last hosting nation and the next hosting nation are also hosted during the opening ceremony. The host nation then presents artistic displays of music, singing, dance and theatre representative of its culture. The artistic presentations have grown in scale and complexity as successive hosts attempt to provide a ceremony that outlasts its predecessor's in terms of memorability. The opening ceremony of the Delhi Games reportedly cost $70 million, with much of the cost incurred in the artistic segment.^[53]

After the artistic portion of the ceremony, the athletes parade into the stadium grouped by nation. The last hosting nation is traditionally the first nation to enter. Nations then enter the stadium alphabetical or continental wise with the host country's athletes being the last to enter. Speeches are given, formally opening the Games. Finally, the Queen's Baton is brought into the stadium and passed on until it reaches the final baton carrier, often a successful Commonwealth athlete from the host nation, who hands it over to the Head of the Commonwealth or their representative.

Closing

Closing ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games at Delhi

The closing ceremony of the Commonwealth Games takes place after all sporting events have concluded. Flag-bearers from each participating country enter the stadium, followed by the athletes who enter together, without any national distinction. The president of the organizing committee and the CGF president make their closing speeches and the Games are officially closed. The CGF president also speaks about the conduct of the games. The mayor of the city that organized the Games transfers the CGF flag to the president of the CGF, who then passes it on to the mayor of the city hosting the next Commonwealth Games. The next host nation then also briefly introduces itself with artistic displays of dance and theater representative of its culture. Many great artists and singers had performed at the ceremonies of the Commonwealth Games.

At the closing ceremony of every Commonwealth Games the CGF President makes an award and presents a trophy to one athlete who has competed with particular distinction and honour both in terms of athletic performance and overall contribution to his or her team. Athletes are nominated by their Commonwealth Games Association at the end of the final day of competition and the winner is selected by a panel comprising the CGF President and representatives from each of the six Commonwealth Regions. The ‘David Dixon Award’ as it is called was introduced in Manchester 2002, after the late David Dixon, former Honorary Secretary of the CGF, in honour of his monumental contribution to Commonwealth sport for many years.^[54]

Medal presentation

A medal ceremony is held after each event is concluded. The winner, second and third-place competitors or teams stand on top of a three-tiered rostrum to be awarded their respective medals. After the medals are given out by a CGF member, the national flags of the three medallists are raised while the national anthem of the gold medallist's country plays. Volunteering citizens of the host country also act as hosts during the medal ceremonies, as they aid the officials who present the medals and act as flag-bearers.

List of Commonwealth Games

1911,1934

1938

1930

  1950, 1990

1954

1958

1962

1966

1970, 1986

1974

1978

1982

1994

1998

2002

2006

2010

2014

2018

2022

Host cities of Commonwealth Games

Edition	Year	Host City & Host Nation	Opened by	Start Date	End Date	Sports	Events	Nations	Competitors	Top Nation	Ref
Inter-Empire Championships
–	1911	London, United Kingdom	George V	12 May	1 June	4	9	4	Unknown	Canada
British Empire Games
I	1930	Hamilton, Canada	Viscount Willingdon	16 August	23 August	6	59	11	400	England	[1]
II	1934	London, England	–	4 August	11 August	6	68	16	500	England	[2]
III	1938	Sydney, Australia	Lord Wakehurst	5 February	12 February	7	71	15	464	Australia	[3]
–	1942	Montreal, Canada	Cancelled due to the Second World War[55]
–	1946	Cardiff, Wales
IV	1950	Auckland, New Zealand	Sir Bernard Freyberg	4 February	11 February	9	88	12	590	Australia	[4]
British Empire and Commonwealth Games
V	1954	Vancouver, Canada	Earl Alexander of Tunis	30 July	7 August	9	91	24	662	England	[5]
VI	1958	Cardiff, Wales	Philip, Duke of Edinburgh	18 July	26 July	9	94	36	1122	England	[6]
VII	1962	Perth, Australia		22 November	1 December	9	104	35	863	Australia	[7]
VIII	1966	Kingston, Jamaica		4 August	13 August	9	110	34	1050	England	[8]
British Commonwealth Games
IX	1970	Edinburgh, Scotland	Philip, Duke of Edinburgh	16 July	25 July	9	121	42	1383	Australia	[9]
X	1974	Christchurch, New Zealand		24 January	2 February	9	121	38	1276	Australia	[10]
Commonwealth Games
XI	1978	Edmonton, Canada	Elizabeth II	3 August	12 August	10	128	46	1474	Canada	[11]
XII	1982	Brisbane, Australia	Philip, Duke of Edinburgh	30 September	9 October	10	142	46	1583	Australia	[12]
XIII	1986	Edinburgh, Scotland	Elizabeth II	24 July	2 August	10	163	26	1662	England	[13]
XIV	1990	Auckland, New Zealand	Prince Edward	24 January	3 February	10	204	55	2073	Australia	[14]
XV	1994	Victoria, Canada	Elizabeth II	18 August	28 August	10	217	63	2557	Australia	[15]
XVI	1998	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	Tuanku Jaafar	11 September	21 September	15	213	70	3633	Australia	[16]
XVII	2002	Manchester, England	Elizabeth II	25 July	4 August	17	281	72	3679	Australia	[17]
XVIII	2006	Melbourne, Australia		15 March	26 March	16	245	71	4049	Australia	[18]
XIX	2010	Delhi, India	Pratibha Patil	3 October	14 October	17	272	71	4352	Australia	[19]
XX	2014	Glasgow, Scotland	Elizabeth II	23 July	3 August	17	261	71	4947	England	[20]
XXI	2018	Gold Coast, Australia	Charles, Prince of Wales	4 April	15 April	19	275	71	4426	Australia	[21]
XXII	2022	Birmingham, England	TBA	27 July	7 August	18
XXIII	2026	Election in 2019	TBA

Note: The 1911 Inter-Empire Championships held in London is seen as a precursor to the modern Commonwealth Games, but is not normally considered an official edition of the Games themselves. Also, the United Kingdom competed as one country, unlike the Commonwealth Games today when they compete as England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Canada topped the medal table by winning 4 events.^[56]

All-time medal table

Below is a Top 10 all-time medal table.

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	Australia (AUS)	932	774	709	2415
2	England (ENG)	714	715	715	2144
3	Canada (CAN)	484	516	555	1555
4	India (IND)	181	175	148	504
5	New Zealand (NZL)	158	219	277	654
6	South Africa (RSA)	130	123	136	389
7	Scotland (SCO)	119	132	200	451
8	Kenya (KEN)	85	75	77	237
9	Nigeria (NGR)	70	75	91	236
10	Wales (WAL)	67	98	141	306
Totals (10 nations)		2940	2902	3049	8891

List of Commonwealth sports

There are a total of 22 sports (with three multi-disciplinary sports) and a further seven para-sports which are approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation. 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.

In 2015, the Commonwealth Games Federation agreed large changes to the programme which increased the number of core sports, whilst removing a number of optionals, those removed are listed below.^[59]

Recognised sports are sports which have been approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation but which are deemed to need expansion; host nations may not pick these sports for their programme until the Federation's requirements are fulfilled.^[61]

Participation

Only six teams have attended every Commonwealth Games: Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales. Australia has been the highest scoring team for thirteen games, England for seven and Canada for one.

  Countries that have hosted, or plan to host, the event
  Other countries that enter the games
  Countries that have entered the games but no longer do so
0•0 Host cities and year of games

Table of Team Participation by Commonwealth Games Edition
Team Edition I II III IV V VI VII VIII IX X XI XII XIII XIV XV XVI XVII XVIII XIX XX XXI Year 1930 1934 1938 1950 1954 1958 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 Host Flag Host City Hamilton London Sydney Auckland Vancouver Cardiff Perth Kingston Edinburgh Christchurch Edmonton Brisbane Edinburgh Auckland Victoria Kuala Lumpur Manchester Melbourne Delhi Glasgow Gold Coast Participation \ Host nation Canada England Australia New Zealand Canada Wales Australia Jamaica Scotland New Zealand Canada Australia Scotland New Zealand Canada Malaysia England Australia India Scotland Australia  Aden 1 1962  Anguilla 2 1998–  Antigua and Barbuda 1966–1970, 1978, 1994–  Australia 1930–  Bahamas 1954–1970, 1978–1982, 1990–  Bangladesh 1978, 1990–  Barbados 1954–1982, 1990–  Belize 4 1978, 1994–  Bermuda 1930–1938, 1954–1982, 1990–  Botswana 1974, 1982–  British Guiana 3 1930–1938, 1954–1962  British Honduras 4 1962–1966  British Virgin Islands 1990–  Brunei Darussalam 1990–  Cameroon 1998–  Canada 1930–  Cayman Islands 1978–  Ceylon 5 1938–1950, 1958–1970  Cook Islands 1974–1978, 1986–  Cyprus 1978–1982, 1990–  Dominica 1958–1962, 1970, 1994–  England 1930–  Falkland Islands 1982–  Fiji 6 1938, 1954–1986, 1998–2006, 2014–  Gambia 7 1970–1982, 1990–2010, 2018-  Ghana 8 1958–1982, 1990–  Gibraltar 1958–  Gold Coast 8 1954  Grenada 1970–1982, 1998–  Guernsey 9 1970–  Guyana 3 1966–1970, 1978–1982, 1990–  Hong Kong 10 1934, 1954–1962, 1970–1994  India 1934–1938, 1954–1958, 1966–1982, 1990– Ireland1112 1930  Irish Free State 11 1934  Isle of Man 1958–  Jamaica 1934, 1954–1982, 1990–  Jersey 9 1958–  Kenya 1954–1982, 1990–  Kiribati 1998–  Lesotho 1974–  Malawi 13 1970–  Malaya 14 1950, 1958–1962  Malaysia 1966–1982, 1990–  Maldives 1986–2014  Malta 1958–1962, 1970, 1982–  Mauritius 1958, 1966–1982, 1990–  Montserrat 1994–  Mozambique 1998–  Namibia 1994–  Nauru 1990–  Newfoundland 15 1930–1934  New Zealand 1930–  Nigeria 1950–1958, 1966–1974, 1982, 1990–1994, 2002–  Niue 2002–  Norfolk Island 1986– North Borneo 14 1958–1962  Northern Ireland 1116 1934–1938, 1954–  Northern Rhodesia 18 1954-1958  Pakistan 1954–1970, 1990–  Papua New Guinea 1962–1982, 1990–  Rhodesia and Nyasaland 17 1962  Rwanda 2010–  Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla 2 1978  Saint Helena19 1982, 1998–  Saint Kitts and Nevis 2 1990–  Saint Lucia 1962, 1970, 1978, 1994–  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1958, 1966–1978, 1994–  Samoa 20 1998– Sarawak 14 1958–1962  Scotland 1930–  Seychelles 1990–  Sierra Leone 1958, 1966–1970, 1978, 1990–  Singapore 14 1958–  Solomon Islands 1982, 1990–  South Africa 1930–1958, 1994–  South Arabia 1 1966  Southern Rhodesia 18 1934–1958  Sri Lanka 5 1974–1982, 1990–  Swaziland 1970–  Tanganyika 21 1962  Tanzania 1966–1982, 1990–  Tonga 1974, 1982, 1990–  Trinidad and Tobago 1934–1982, 1990–  Turks and Caicos Islands 1978, 1998–  Tuvalu 1998–  Uganda 1954–1974, 1982, 1990–  Vanuatu 1982–  Wales 1930–  Western Samoa 20 1974–1994  Zambia 13 1970–1982, 1990–  Zimbabwe 1322 1982, 1990–2002
Legend
Participated   Withdrew for political reason   Not eligible to participate   To be determined