Two Cities Vie for the Friendly Games in 2018
Tuesday, November 8, 2011 - 10:13
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| Logo credit: Commonwealth Games Federation |
The host city of the 2018 Commonwealth Games will be announced by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) this Friday, November 11, 2011 at 6pm local time from Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis. In the running are two cities, one on the Asian continent and the other on the Oceanic continent. The south coastal Sri Lankan city of Hambantota was devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami which was reported to have killed a large portion of the town's population. Their bid for the 2018 Games is part of the major facelift for the city in developing Hambantota as a sports hub, having already hosted matches for the 2011 Cricket World Cup. The Australian east coastal city of Gold Coast, located 94km south of the Queensland state capital Brisbane, will be the fifth Australian city looking to host the Commonwealth Games. Australia hosted the Games four times previously, in 1938 (Sydney as British Empire Games), 1962 (Perth), 1982 (Brisbane) and 2006 (Melbourne).
Often referred to as the "Friendly Games," the first Commonwealth Games (then known as the British Empire Games) were held in 1930 in Hamilton, Canada with 400 athletes from 11 countries competing in six sports and 59 events. Showing a tremendous growth in participation since those days in Hamilton, the 2010 Games in Delhi, India hosted 71 nations in 17 sports (272 events) for 4352 athletes. The 2014 Commonwealth Games will be held in the Scottish city of Glasgow.
Who will it be? Watch “live” online when 71 member Commonwealth Games Associations (CGA’s) vote to announce if Hambantota or Gold Coast is the host city of the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
For more information on the Commonwealth Games, please contact SIRC.
Who will it be? Watch “live” online when 71 member Commonwealth Games Associations (CGA’s) vote to announce if Hambantota or Gold Coast is the host city of the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
For more information on the Commonwealth Games, please contact SIRC.
