2014 Commonwealth Games

The 2014 Commonwealth Games (officially the XX Commonwealth Games) were held in Glasgow, Scotland, from 23 July to 3 August 2014.

It was the largest multi-sport event ever held in Scotland with around 4,950 athletes from 71 different nations and territories competing in 18 different sports, outranking the 1970 and 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh. Over the last 10 years, however, Glasgow and Scotland had staged World, Commonwealth, European, or British events in all sports proposed for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, including the World Badminton Championships in 1997.

The Games received acclaim for their organisation, attendance, and the public enthusiasm of the people of Scotland, with Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper hailing them as "the standout games in the history of the movement". Held in Scotland for the third time, the Games were notable for the successes of the Home Nations of the United Kingdom, with England, Wales and hosts Scotland achieving their largest ever gold medal hauls and overall medal hauls at a Commonwealth Games.England finished top of the medal table for the first time since the 1986 Commonwealth Games, also held in Scotland. Kiribati also won its first ever medal at a Commonwealth Games, a gold in the 105 kg men's weightlifting competition.

Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games (known as the British Empire Games from 1930–1950, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954–1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970–1974) is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exception of 1942 and 1946, which were cancelled due to World War II, has taken place every four years since then.

The games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which also controls the sporting programme and selects the host cities. A host city is selected for each edition. 18 cities in seven countries have hosted the event. Apart from many Olympic sports, the games also include some sports that are played predominantly in Commonwealth countries, such as lawn bowls and netball.

Although there are 53 members of the Commonwealth of Nations, 71 teams participate in the Commonwealth Games, as a number of dependent territories compete under their own flag. The four Home Nations of the United Kingdom—England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland—also send separate teams. Only six countries have attended every Commonwealth Games: Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales. Australia has been the highest achieving team for twelve games, England for seven, and Canada for one.

1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games

The 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games were held in Kingston, Jamaica, from 4 to 13 August 1966. This was the first time that the Games had been held outside the so-called White Dominions. Kingston was elected host in Rome, Italy at the 1960 Summer Olympics. The vote was Kingston: 17, Edinburgh, Scotland: 12 and Salisbury, Rhodesia: 5.

Participating teams

34 teams were represented at the 1966 British Empire and Commonwealth Games.
(Teams competing for the first time are shown in bold).

 Antigua and Barbuda

 Australia

 Bahamas

 Barbados

 Bermuda

 British Honduras

 Canada

 Ceylon

 England

 Fiji

 Ghana

 Gibraltar

 Guyana

 India

 Isle of Man

 Jamaica

 Jersey

 Kenya

 Malaysia

 Mauritius

 New Zealand

 Nigeria

 Northern Ireland

 Pakistan

 Papua and New Guinea

 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

 Scotland

 Sierra Leone

 Singapore

 South Arabia

 Tanzania

 Trinidad and Tobago

 Uganda

 Wales

Medals by country

Medals by event

Athletics

Badminton

Boxing

Diving

Cycling

1950 British Empire Games

The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth edition of what is now called the Commonwealth Games. It was held in Auckland, New Zealand between 4 and 11 February 1950, after a 12-year gap from the 3rd edition of the games. The main venue was Eden Park, although the closing ceremonies were held at Western Springs Stadium, see New Zealand at the 1950 British Empire Games. The fourth games were originally awarded to Montreal, Canada and were to be held in 1942 but were cancelled due to World War II.

Participating teams

(Teams participating for the first time in bold).

 Australia

 Canada

 Ceylon

 England

 Fiji

 Malaya

 New Zealand

 Nigeria

 Scotland

 South Africa

 Southern Rhodesia

 Wales

Medals by country

At the 1950 British Empire Games all the teams won at least one medal.

Medals by event

Athletics

Boxing

Cycling

Track

Road

Diving

Men's events

Women's events

Fencing

Men's events

Women's events

Lawn Bowls

All events were for men only.

+ won play offs

Rowing

All events were for men only. The events were held at Lake Karapiro, 160 kilometres (99 mi) south of Auckland. Three special trains took 1500 people to Cambridge on 7 February 1950.

Abuja bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games

The Abuja bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games was an unsuccessful bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games by the city of Abuja, Nigeria. The bidding race was won by the Glasgow 2014 bid after a 47–24 vote by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) General Assembly on 9 November 2007 in Sri Lanka.

Background

The former Nigerian leader General Yakubu Gowon was the head of the Abuja 2014 Commonwealth Games bid team, he called for all Nigerians to support the games for the "glory of Nigeria". He suggested that Nigeria would be a prime location for the games because of its unity, serenity, topography and availability of standard sporting facilities. Abuja had recently hosted the All-Africa Games, The African regional version of the olympics, for which it constructed a world-class olympic stadium and games village. It was a hugely successful tournament with more than 7,000 athletes (and larger in size than any Commonwealth Games ever held). The 2014 Commonwealth Games would also be an integral part of national celebration plans for Nigeria's centenary.

Abuja

Abuja (/əˈbuːdʒə/) is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. Located in the central part of Nigeria. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos, though the latter remains the country's most populous city. The indigenous inhabitants of Abuja are the Gbagyi (Gawri) as the major language, Mada, Ganagana, Koro, Mada, etc. Abuja's geography is defined by Aso Rock, a 400-metre monolith left by water erosion. The Presidential Complex, National Assembly, Supreme Court and much of the city extend to the south of the rock. Zuma Rock, a 792-metre monolith, lies just north of the city on the road to Kaduna State.

At the 2006 census, the city of Abuja had a population of 776,298, making it one of the ten most populous cities in Nigeria. According to the United Nations, Abuja grew at the annual rate of 139.7% between 2000 and 2010, making it the fastest growing city in the world. As of 2015, the city is still experiencing an annual growth of at least 35%, still retaining its position as the fastest growing city on the African continent and one of the fastest in the world. Abuja has witnessed a huge influx of people into the city; the growth has led to the emergence of satellite towns such as Karu Urban Area, Suleja, Gwagwalada, Lugbe, Kuje and smaller settlements to which the planned city is sprawling. The unofficial metropolitan area of Abuja has a population of well over three million and comprises the fourth largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, surpassed only by Lagos, Kano and Ibadan.