In news– The 2022 Commonwealth Games hosted by Birmingham was concluded recently.
2022 Commonwealth Games-
- Officially known as the XXII Commonwealth Games, it is an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth of Nations took place in Birmingham, England from 28 July to 8 August 2022.
- Birmingham was announced as host on 21 December 2017, marking England’s third time hosting the Commonwealth Games after London 1934 and Manchester 2002, and the 7th Games in the United Kingdom after London and Manchester, Cardiff 1958, Edinburgh 1970 and 1986 and Glasgow 2014.
- The Games was the largest ever held, with 72 participating nations.
- It was also the first major international multi-sports event to be an integrated event, meaning that the para and non-para games are held at the same time.
- In addition, it was the first games to host more women’s gold medals than men’s.
- Alongside the games a cultural festival was held across the West Midlands, as well as a number of trade events.
- The official emblem was unveiled on 27 July 2019 at Centenary Square during the Commonwealth Social festival.
- It was designed by local agency RBL, based in Royal Leamington Spa, and is a jagged, triangular “B” shape formed by blue-yellow gradient lines representing the key venues of the Games in the West Midlands.
- The emblem is also the first to use the new branding for the CGF, as “Commonwealth Sport”.
- The official mascot for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games is Perry, a multi-coloured bull. Perry is named after an area of Birmingham, Perry Barr.
India’s performance-
- It was India’s 18th appearance at the Commonwealth Games.
- India finished the games fourth with 61 medals, which includes 22 gold, 16 silver and 23 bronze.
- Saikhom Mirabai Chanu won the first gold medal for the country at the Commonwealth Games 2022.
- Sharath Kamal won four (3 Gold and 1 Silver) medals in Table Tennis.
History of Commonwealth games-
- The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games, is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations.
- The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exception of 1942 and 1946 (cancelled due to World War II), have successively run every four years since.
- The Games were called the British Empire Games from 1930 to 1950, the British Empire and Commonwealth Games from 1954 to 1966, and British Commonwealth Games from 1970 to 1974.
- Athletes with a disability are included as full members of their national teams since 2002, making the Commonwealth Games the first fully inclusive international multi-sport event.
- Inspired by the Inter-Empire Championships, part of the 1911 Festival of Empire, Melville Marks Robinson founded the British Empire Games which were first held in Hamilton, Canada in 1930.
- The Games are overseen by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), which controls the sporting programme and selects host cities.
- The games movement consists of international sports federations (IFs), Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs) and organising committees for each specific Commonwealth Games.
- Certain traditions, such as the hoisting of the Commonwealth Games flag and Queen’s Baton Relay, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies, are unique to the Games.
- In 2018, the Games became the first global multi-sport event to feature an equal number of men’s and women’s medal events and four years later they are the first global multi-sport event to have more events for women than men.
Source: The Indian Express
