Commonwealth Games: Metamorphosis from British empire Games to present state

The 21st edition of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, also known as British Empire Games, has already taken off into full action in Birmingham, United Kingdom. This year’s edition recorded over 5,000 to 6,000 athletes representing over 72 nations and territories, setting out themselves for the ultimate prize. 

Top countries participating in the event include Australia, India, South Africa, England, New Zealand, Nigeria, Canada and Australia. The games began July 28 and are scheduled to end by August 8. 

However, it is very important to know that the Commonwealth Games which is held every four years, has a long history. 

The games had to undergo some levels of transition and transformation from 1930 to 1950 when the games were formerly known as the British Empire Games; from 1954 until 1966 the British Empire and Commonwealth Games; and from 1970 to 1974 when it became British Commonwealth Games.

For the sake of history, let’s reverse the wheel of time back to 1930 where it all began, and unleash the mystery that gave birth to present-day “Commonwealth Games”. Before I slip down into history, it is pertinent to understand that the Commonwealth games are games organized for the commonwealth nation. You might want to start to muddle how Commonwealth nations came to be. The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of 53 independent sovereign states of former British colonies, except Mozambique and the United Kingdom itself.

The Genesis

Originally,  the idea of the Commonwealth Games was to bring nations together in a colourful celebration of sport and human performance. It was with this idea of goodwill that triggered the Australian-born John Astley Cooper to first proposed the games in 1891,by writing letters and articles for several periodicals suggesting a “Pan Brittanic, Pan Anglican Contest every four years as a means of increasing goodwill and understanding of the British Empire.” It was this idea that inspired Pierre de Coubertin to start the international Olympic Games movement.

Forty years later,after  John Astley Cooper idea did not materialise as expected, it was Melville Marks Robinson, who went down to the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam and tender the proposal of organising the first British Empire Games in Hamilton in 1930 which was approved and given the name “British Empire Games” in 1930. 

1930: THE “BRITISH EMPIRE GAMES”

In 1930 after it was officially proclaimed as the British Empire Games , games were held in Hamilton, in the province of Ontario in Canada from 16–23 August 1930 and opened by Lord Willingdon. The competition began with just eleven countries (Australia, Bermuda, British Guyana, Canada, England, Northern Ireland, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa and Wales) and 400 athletes compared to 72 countries and over 5000 athletes we have in today’s Commonwealth games. Also during the first edition of the games, there wasn’t much sport activities to compete in, what we have then were boxing, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving and wrestling and  Women competed in only the swimming events which is contrary to what we have in the present day commonwealth game 2022 where women were to compete in 136 women’s events as compared to 134 events for men. It shows how tremendously the game has improved over the decades. Since 1930, the games had been taking place after every four years with the exception of 1942 and 1946, which were canceled due to World War II.

The second British Empire Games was held in 1934 and hosted in London, Wembley Park. However, the game was actually scheduled to be hosted in Johannesburg, South Africa but due to concerns over South Africa’s apartheid policy which inspired racism against Asian and black athletes, it was cancelled. Compared  to what we had in the first edition, the second edition of the game witnessed an increase in the number of countries that participated from 11 to 16, while also allowing  women making their Games debut in athletics. Following the third edition of the Games, held in Sydney in 1938 with 15 nations and 464 athletes participating, there was a 12-year interruption caused as a result of World War II. The Games resumed in 1950 in Auckland, New Zealand.

1954: “BRITISH EMPIRE AND COMMONWEALTH GAMES”

In 1954, the former British Empire games was changed to “British Empire and Commonwealth Games”. The 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games marked the fifth edition of the quadrennial events. It was held in Vancouver. That edition marked the first time the Games were contested by countries that were no longer part of the British Empire, as the name “British Empire and Commonwealth Games” implies. Another major interesting fact about the 1954 fifth edition was that it witnessed the participation of Twenty-four countries, with live telecasts for the first time in Games history. The ‘Miracle Mile’, as it became known, saw both the gold medalist, Roger Bannister of England and silver medalist John Landy of Australia, run sub-four-minute races.

The sixth edition of British Empire and Commonwealth Games of 1958 were held in Cardiff, Wales. Cardiff had to wait for a good 12 years before she could host the games longer than originally scheduled because of the Second World War. At the sixth edition of the games, we witnessed the Queen’s Baton Relay, which has been a tradition as a prelude to every British Empire and Commonwealth Games ever since. The sixth edition recorded the participation of 35 nations and 1,122 athletes, an increase. Undoubtedly, The sixth edition of the games was the largest sporting event ever held in Wales.  

The 1966  Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica, with the introduction of badminton and shooting competition as events for the first time. It marked the first time that the Games had been held outside the White territory. Thirty-four nations competed in the  Games with a total of 1,316 athletes and officials.

1970: “British Commonwealth Games”

The 1970 British Commonwealth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland and was graced with the presence of Queen Elizabeth II as head of the Commonwealth. 42 countries competed in the 1970 Games and metric units were used instead of imperial units for events for the first time.

The 1974 British Commonwealth Games were held in Christchurch, New Zealand featuring a theme song titled “Join Together”.

1978: “COMMONWEALTH GAMES”

The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Which was the first the event bore the current day name of the Commonwealth Games. 1,500 athletes from 46 countries participated in the game. Nigeria had to boycotted games due to protest against New Zealand’s sporting contacts with apartheid-era South Africa.

The 1986 games held in Edinburgh, Scotland, didn’t went well due to U.K. government’s refusal to  sanctions South Africa for apartheid policy. As a result, only 26 countries with  a total of 1,662 athletes competed. Over 32 African, Asian, and Caribbean countries boycotted the games.

In the 1990 15th edition of the games hosted in Auckland, New Zealand, the games  however, saw a vigor, with over  55 countries and 2,826 athletes participating. The 1994 Games in Victoria, Canada, witnessed the return of South Africa back into the Commonwealth Games after the end of apartheid, after over 30 years since the country last competed in the Games in 1958.

The 21st century commonwealth games

In the 21st century, the game has been hosted by countries like England ( 2002,2022), Australia (2006-2018), India (2010), and Scotland  (2018). By 2002, the game had fully become an international multi-sport event.

At the 2002 Commonwealth Games , it was held in Manchester, England. 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 Commonwealth Paraplegic Games were also included in the main games as demonstration sports. Initially, it was a separate competition organized between 1962 to 1974, discontinued after 1974, but in 2002 the para events were fully incorporated in the main Commonwealth Games, allowing the para athletes to participate as part of the main national teams. 

 The 2010 Commonwealth Games were hosted in Delhi, India, marking the first time that the Games were held in India, a Commonwealth republic. 6,081 athletes from 71 countries competed in 21 different sports and 272 events. Rwanda made its debut in the games since after the genocide.

The 2018 Games in Gold Coast, Australia, demonstrated how tremendously the event had developed in terms of gender or sex equality. The 20th edition of the game presented an equal number of events  for both men and women. The 2020 21st Commonwealth edition was held in  Birmingham, England. With the introduction of judo and cricket and exception of any competition in shooting and archery, artistic swimming, basketball (5×5), bowling, fencing, rowing and water polo, over 5,000 to 6,000 athletes representing over 72 nations were participating in the games.

Promoted with the idea of humanity and equality, the Games tend to harmonize the Commonwealth family through the glorious quadrennial sports festival, inspiring athletes to compete in the spirit of friendship and brotherhood. Dramatically, over the years, the Games have evolved and transformed from featuring the initial 11 countries and 400 athletes, to a global spectacle of 4,600 sportsmen and women from across 72 nations and territories. 

An historical review of the Games over time thus serves as a reflection on other sports events in world history over the 20th century, starting as an event for former British Empire colonies to a venue with an increasing number of independent countries. This is indeed a legacy. 

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