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What Will Secure The Future Of The Commonwealth Games


  

31 members have voted

  1. 1. What are your 3 options to secure future CGs after 2014

    • Reduce the size of the games (less athletes, smaller venues)
    • Institute a technical evaluation team as per the IOC
    • Change the schedule to run the CGs out of Olympic or WC years
    • Set a maximum budget for venue construction/reuse existing structures
    • Change the focus to a youth CG format
      0
    • Invite non-Commonwealth nations to participate
    • Remove the current board and executives and begin anew
    • Change the sports line up to focus on Commonwealth sports (e.g cricket, netball)
    • Form a Commonwealth Games Broadcasting body a la the Olympic Broadcasting Organisation
    • Other


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As irrelevant to you as baseball is to many of us.

Why replace it - it's a popular Commonwealth Sport with great playing numbers in Commonwealth countries.

What does baseball have to do with anything, it is still a much more popular sport then lawn bowls will ever be.

Lawn bowls isn't even a sport in my opinion. It should be replaced with a 12 team 20/20 cricket tournament. 4 groups of 3 with winners of each advancing to medal round.

Australia, England, Scotland, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Kenya, Trinidad, Zimbabwe, Guyana

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What does baseball have to do with anything, it is still a much more popular sport then lawn bowls will ever be.

Lawn bowls isn't even a sport in my opinion. It should be replaced with a 12 team 20/20 cricket tournament. 4 groups of 3 with winners of each advancing to medal round.

Australia, England, Scotland, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Kenya, Trinidad, Zimbabwe, Guyana

I think cricket should be included too, but as an optional team sport. And anyway, any team sport is going to be more expensive than others.

The thing is about this argument that comes up often (particularly from Canucks) about "why lawn bowls?" or "why netball?" just neglects to mention that they ARE very popular Commonwealth sports in many, many countries. And the CWGs is the pinnacle for them. It's not like every sport at an Olympic games is super popular outside games times either - when's the last time you sat in front of the TV at prime time to sit back and thrill to a bandminton, judo, fencing or modern pentathlon tournament? I don't see Canadians complaining that a Toronto SOG bid is a waste of time because they will be forced to have sports like handball which are not popular in your neck of the woods.

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I think cricket should be included too, but as an optional team sport. And anyway, any team sport is going to be more expensive than others.

The thing is about this argument that comes up often (particularly from Canucks) about "why lawn bowls?" or "why netball?" just neglects to mention that they ARE very popular Commonwealth sports in many, many countries. And the CWGs is the pinnacle for them. It's not like every sport at an Olympic games is super popular outside games times either - when's the last time you sat in front of the TV at prime time to sit back and thrill to a bandminton, judo, fencing or modern pentathlon tournament? I don't see Canadians complaining that a Toronto SOG bid is a waste of time because they will be forced to have sports like handball which are not popular in your neck of the woods.

Well those sports beat lawn bowls any day. The "sport" has barely any existence besides Malaysia, Oceania, Africa, India and is popular in the commonwealth?

Not sure about participating numbers but cricket 20x12 = 240 more athletes and every commonwealth host should have a cricket oval.

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Well those sports beat lawn bowls any day. The "sport" has barely any existence besides Malaysia, Oceania, Africa, India and is popular in the commonwealth?

Yeah, and it's a COMMONWEALTH Games, so what's wrong with having sports that are popular in COMMONWEALTH countries? I sure wouldn't whine if lacrosse, say, was a compulsory sport in the CWGs, though it would be considered abit of a joke here in Oz.

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Yeah, and it's a COMMONWEALTH Games, so what's wrong with having sports that are popular in COMMONWEALTH countries? I sure wouldn't whine if lacrosse, say, was a compulsory sport in the CWGs, though it would be considered abit of a joke here in Oz.

For some reason "but it doesn't" didn't show up before Africa.

It only exists in the British Isles New Zealand and Australia.

You really don;t know your sport. Lacrosse as a joke? compared to lawn bowls? that's funny. Lacrosse is a sport lawn bowls no. Lacrosse at best is a novelty sport anywhere even in Canada though.

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For some reason "but it doesn't" didn't show up before Africa.

It only exists in the British Isles New Zealand and Australia.

You really don;t know your sport. Lacrosse as a joke? compared to lawn bowls? that's funny. Lacrosse is a sport lawn bowls no. Lacrosse at best is a novelty sport anywhere even in Canada though.

Not that I trust Wikipedia, but it lists it as "popular in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, Hong Kong and parts of the United States. It is also gaining momentum in Japan. Because of its competitiveness, skill and the fact that it is a non-contact sport, the game suits people from teen years through to their nineties. However, there is a considerable professional competition with many younger men and women playing. Since the early 2000s, the sport has developed in Denmark as well as Norway with several clubs already formed in the Stavanger region of the Country and the Norwegian bowls Association being established in November 2011 by 2014 commonwealth games hopeful Nick Evans who hopes the game will grow throughout Norway so that National & International events will be held in Norway in the not so distant future. The World Indoor Bowls Championships held in the UK annually is a £100,000 competition and is watched by 3 million viewers via BBC TV].

Another phenomenon is barefoot or corporate bowls, where established clubs in Australia open their greens to paying customers who are organised into teams for a social few hours on the green."

Wikipedia lawn bowls

Fair enough, you're not a fan. Neither am I. But it IS a quite important sport in terms of participation, especially in the Commonwealth.

PS BTW - glad you finally got educated and saw the light that Cricket is far more gobal than baseball.

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Not that I trust Wikipedia, but it lists it as "popular in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, Hong Kong and parts of the United States. It is also gaining momentum in Japan. Because of its competitiveness, skill and the fact that it is a non-contact sport, the game suits people from teen years through to their nineties. However, there is a considerable professional competition with many younger men and women playing. Since the early 2000s, the sport has developed in Denmark as well as Norway with several clubs already formed in the Stavanger region of the Country and the Norwegian bowls Association being established in November 2011 by 2014 commonwealth games hopeful Nick Evans who hopes the game will grow throughout Norway so that National & International events will be held in Norway in the not so distant future. The World Indoor Bowls Championships held in the UK annually is a £100,000 competition and is watched by 3 million viewers via BBC TV].

Another phenomenon is barefoot or corporate bowls, where established clubs in Australia open their greens to paying customers who are organised into teams for a social few hours on the green."

Wikipedia lawn bowls

Fair enough, you're not a fan. Neither am I. But it IS a quite important sport in terms of participation, especially in the Commonwealth.

PS BTW - glad you finally got educated and saw the light that Cricket is far more gobal than baseball.

I never said cricket was more popular sport then baseball. Its played in more populated countries hence why many people follow the sport. In terms of countries I would say baseball.

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I never said cricket was more popular sport then baseball. Its played in more populated countries hence why many people follow the sport. In terms of countries I would say baseball.

Whatever. I'm not going onto THAT broken record again. There's a world beyond Canada and North America.

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Jeezus mate, Oz has won Olympic medals in baseball and softball too. Doesn't mean that it's any more than a yankee minority novelty sport here.

Of course its a minority sport the same with cricket in all of Western hemisphere (minus the small population of the west Indies), Most of Africa all of Asia - South Asia.

In Canada we tend to think why is it that a sport is named after a bug.

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Lawn bowls is huuuuge in the Commonwealth, forgotten in the list above was the British Isles.

If we look at the top 7 medal tally for lawn bowls at Delhi 2010, we have South Africa, England, Wales, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Northern Ireland.

Seems like a pretty good mix of nations right there.

Lawn Bowls is also a pretty good sport in terms of the facilities needed. Most host cities will be able to put forward a decent sized bowls club (Pakuranga Bowls Club was the venue for the Auckland 1990 event), while if that is not available, its not too hard putting together a temporary venue.

I'm another who thinks 2020 would be a great CG addition, but it's arguably far more venue intensive, you also have the issue with getting together a half decent wicket for the event (which I know was a little bit of a problem in KL, granted, it was the full one day version of the game).

At the end of the day lawn bowls is maybe a quirky addition (despite it being extremely popular), but I think all *Games* events below Olympics have those, it gives them regional character.

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I say cricket because its the only games that cricket would work out. All host countries that bid/host have a fairly okay cricket team.

Lets say for ex. the games are held in Toronto. Tomorrow the games would be held without any problem. 4 groups of 3 teams and then a 4 team knockout.

Using Delhi's schedule:

3- ceremony

4- 3 games

5- 3 games

6- 3 games

7- 3 games

8- rest

9- semifinals

10- gold medal game.

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Entering the bowls argument and personally I'd remove it as a compulsory sport - but obviously if hosts want it the sport would remain as one of the optional sports. Looking at the list of Core and Optional sports there are regular events like cycling, gymnastics and diving which perhaps should be protected with core status, but moving forward and I think the important thing is to keep the demands for host cities realistic - so no demanding 5000 seater venues when 2000 seaters will be sufficient.

The most important thing though is securing it's place on the calendar so events don't have to be held in March or October - and when they do take place in the summer athletes are not forced into choosing between the games and another event.

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Entering the bowls argument and personally I'd remove it as a compulsory sport - but obviously if hosts want it the sport would remain as one of the optional sports. Looking at the list of Core and Optional sports there are regular events like cycling, gymnastics and diving which perhaps should be protected with core status, but moving forward and I think the important thing is to keep the demands for host cities realistic - so no demanding 5000 seater venues when 2000 seaters will be sufficient.

The most important thing though is securing it's place on the calendar so events don't have to be held in March or October - and when they do take place in the summer athletes are not forced into choosing between the games and another event.

The CWG is relaxed in terms of venue capacities.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Games may cut athlete quota

THE Commonwealth Games Federation is considering a proposal to reduce athlete numbers from three per nation to two in athletics and swimming, a move said to be partly designed to curtail Australia's dominance of the medal table.

Following the election of a new president, Malaysia's Prince Imran, the federation has embarked on a wide-ranging Games review, which will conclude in September. The sports program and athlete numbers are being examined as part of the process.

Australian Commonwealth Games chief Perry Crosswhite said he believed the two-per-nation idea was proposed with Games superpower Australia in mind. "I think there's been a concerted effort over time to limit our medals," he said.

"This review came out of Delhi because the federation is trying to see what it can do to see that that kind of thing (India's chaotic preparation to host the Games) doesn't happen again.

"I think they are trying to keep down overall athlete numbers, because they continue to grow and that makes things more expensive.

"Then the minute you talk about athlete numbers people talk about one nation winning all three medals in an event. In Delhi, I think Australia did it once (women's 200m breaststroke), England did it about three times and India a couple of times so it's not a big problem.

"But at different times it's been aimed at us because since 1990 we have done very well and they are looking to cut down the medals Australia is winning."

Crosswhite said the push was particularly strong after the 2006 Melbourne Games when Australia had double the medal tally of the next best nation, England, winning 84 gold medals and a total of 221.

But Australia's tally dropped significantly in Delhi (74 gold, 177 medals) as India rose to second place (38 gold, 101 medals), just pipping England (37 gold, 142 medals).

Ironically, the move comes at a time when Crosswhite believes Australia's Games supremacy is under threat from England, which will go into a virtual home Games in Glasgow in 2014 with the momentum created by a home Olympics this year.

"I would say in Scotland it will be really tough to stay No 1," Crosswhite said.

"We will be challenged at the top of the medal table by England and they are out to get us."

However, Australia will then host the 2018 Games on the Gold Coast.

Crosswhite said the Australian Commonwealth Games Association would oppose any move to reduce its representation in swimming and athletics.

"We want it to remain at three per nation because we will get fuller fields and better athletes," Crosswhite said.

"We are happy with the current situation because the role of the Commonwealth Games in Australia is to develop younger athletes and the third athlete tends to be a young athlete."

He said previous proposals to go to two per nation had been defeated and he hoped that this one would fail also.

The Australian

Edited by Sir Rols
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  • 7 months later...

Para-Commonwealth Games is a possibility, but not now says Glasgow 2014 chief

October 9 - Glasgow 2014 chief executive David Grevemberg has claimed that a separate Para-Commonwealth Games for the world's top disability athletes is a long-term possibility but admitted it is not something he thinks will happen in the near future.

The Commonwealth Games have long existed as an integrated event, with able-bodied and disabled athletes competing alongside each other in contrast to the Olympic and Paralympic Games, where they compete separately.

Holding separate events for able-bodied and disabled athletes has become a more common theme in recent years, as there is now an Asian Para Games that follows the Asian Games and a Parapan American Games that follows the Pan American Games.

But Grevemberg, who served as the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) sports director for eight years before joining Glasgow 2014, suggested that such a move may still be too early for the Commonwealth Games Movement.

"In terms of the Commonwealth as a whole, I think the Paralympic Movement is still a developing concept," he told insidethegames.

"There are obviously Commonwealth nations that have very strong Parasport programmes in place but the majority do not have that.

"It is still something they are getting to grips with and London 2012 was the first time some of the smaller Commonwealth nations were participating in Paralympic sport on an international level.

"The Paralympics has gone out there and established itself as an independent brand and that works completely.

"But the Commonwealth Games is at a different stage of its development and while a time may come for two separate events, I think a fully integrated approach works best for now."

...

more at: Insidethegames

Hmmm. Not sure if this would be the right way to go. One of the things I think works well in the Commies is that it has some para sports integrated within the main schedule.

Not to mention that I think the CGF should be looking at making the Commies an easier event for cities to host, not increase the burden!

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I think before making such an attempt, the CGF needs to restore the reputation of the Commonwealth Games after the Delhi 2010 debacle. Two successively well-organized editions in Glasgow and the Gold Coast should definitely help. But we saw in Delhi that the CGF was way too passive towards Messrs Kalmadi and Bhanot - a more active attitude and even commercialization à la IOC might be needed.

One way I could think of is to turn the baton relay into a torch relay. The IOC doesn't have exclusive rights to lighting a fire, correct? You saw in London that the torch relay inspired a lot of people and drew attention to the fact that the Games weren't too far away. And the Commonwealth Games could also do with an anthem and shorter speeches. The speeches at Delhi 2010 were unbearable for their length. But more on that in the other thread in which I've been meaning to comment for days!

Two more things: They need a more thorough bidding process - first a technical evaluation (in which Delhi would not have necessarily done well) and then a formal vote. And they need to consider moving the Commonwealth Games into uneven years, where they won't conflict with either the Olympic Games or the World Cup in terms of attention.

*done well enough to avoid criticism for ticketing and construction plans

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First remove irrelevant sports such as lawn bowls and replace them with cricket.

Indeed - be a pioneer for the IOC and introduce Twenty20 Cricket and squash. Demonstrate that these sports can work in a multi-sports event!

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