Ultimate ideas on the Commonwealth Video games
Let’s begin with a number of numbers:
Over 11 days of competitors, world-class athletes from 74 nations and territories competed throughout 10 sports activities for 1,168 medals in 215 medal occasions. Greater than 630,000 folks engaged with the Video games by way of venues, dwell websites and the Glasgow 2026 Competition; over 4,000 volunteers gave 156,110 hours of their time, with the Video games’ social media channels alone drawing almost half a billion views.
Whereas this was a multi-sport occasion, I solely attended the observe and subject, and this system was blended. There have been occasions like the lads’s mile with two World Champions within the subject (Josh Kerr and Jake Wightman), which might have graced any observe meet on the planet. Different occasions had been relatively second division in high quality. That the occasion was only one week earlier than the European Athletics Championships meant that most of the prime English athletes opted out – or, like Amy Hunt, competed solely within the 100m semis and ultimate. Scottish athletes had been out in pressure proudly competing for Scotland in Scotland.
Credit score to Glasgow for stepping in to avoid wasting the video games at brief discover; Glasgow was a wonderful host metropolis, very welcoming. In 2014, when Glasgow final hosted the video games, there was a purpose-built athlete village; this time, athletes had been unfold throughout 18 inns. Talking from private expertise, I used to be disillusioned that there was no media transport, no free journey on public transport, and that the most cost effective media resort was $430 an evening – in a price range resort. The fee this week can be about $160. Disappointing that the organizers allowed inns to take advantage of media from the smaller Commonwealth nations.
In 2014, observe and subject was at Hampden Park, the nationwide soccer stadium, transformed for the Video games, a stadium with a capability of round 50,000. In 2026, it was Scotstoun Stadium, with a capability of 11,000, however even that, I consider, was solely crammed for the ultimate night. In 2022, Birmingham had often crowds of 25,000 for morning periods.
One of many ironies was that Australia topped the medal desk – in observe and subject and throughout all sports activities – but the video games had been in Glasgow as a result of Melbourne pulled out and the Australian authorities successfully pulled the plug on Gold Coast’s try to step up – by refusing them any federal funds!
India will host the subsequent video games in Ahmedabad (Amdavad), Gujarat, in October 2030, once we will most likely be asking the identical questions – is that this the final ever Commonwealth Video games?
The medal desk – all sports activities – confirmed:
Rank
Nation
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Complete
1
Australia
35
18
27
80
2
Canada
13
10
12
35
3
England
10
18
15
43
With 22 nations profitable at the least one medal
The medal desk – observe and subject solely – confirmed:
Rank
Nation
Gold
Silver
Bronze
Complete
1
Australia
12
11
11
34
2
England
6
9
6
21
3
India
1
1
3
5
