The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has received updates from four countries expressing interest in hosting the 2022 Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has received updates from four countries expressing interest in hosting the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Australia, Canada, Malaysia and the United Kingdom have all expressed interest in becoming host country of the Commonwealth Games in five years’ time, though only the latter has officially submitted an application.
Birmingham submitted a bid before the deadline on September 30, 2017, but it has seen been deemed to be not fully compliant to CGF requirements.
CGF stated that updates had been received in the last two months since the Federation’s executive board decided to extend the deadline for the selection process.
The selection of a host city will be made following an executive board meeting on December 6, 2017, in which the CGF Evaluation Panel and the CGF Review Team will discuss the suitability of contenders.
Durban, South Africa, was originally awarded host status in 2015, when it ran unopposed after Edmonton in Canada withdrew its application following the impact of falling oil prices on the city’s economy.
However, it was stripped of the event after missing set milestones and financial commitments in March 2017.
Birmingham, UK, then became the only interested party by the original September 30, 2017 deadline but the CGF deemed its bid was not fully compliant.
The UK government agreed to back Birmingham’s bid over fellow UK city Liverpool, including funding for three quarters of the potential £750million cost.
Malaysia’s Kuala Lumpur and Canada’s Victoria are thought to be the UK city’s main competitors, as Australia’s Gold Coast is hosting the 2018 Commonwealth Games next year.
Leader of Birmingham City Council and the 2022 Bid team, Ian Ward, said that they had worked closely with the UK government and Commonwealth Games England to develop a bid that would showcase and benefit Birmingham, the wider West Midlands and the UK.
He said that the team continued to meet with the CGF to demonstrate that Birmingham would make the ideal Games host, being “at the heart of the UK and the soul of the Commonwealth”, and looked forward to a decision in the near future.
