The 2018 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XXI Commonwealth Games and also known as Gold Coast 2018, was an international
multi-sport event for members of the
Commonwealth that were held on the
Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, between 4 and 15 April 2018. It was the fifth time Australia had hosted the
Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the ex ...
and the first time a major multi-sport had an equal number of events for male and female athletes.
4,426 athletes including 300 para-athletes from 71 Commonwealth Games Associations took part in the event.
The Gambia
The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...
, which withdrew its membership from the
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the C ...
and
Commonwealth Games Federation in 2013, was readmitted on 31 March 2018 and participated in the event.
With 275 sets of medals, the games featured 18
Commonwealth sports
The Commonwealth Games sports comprise all the sports officially recognised and approved by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). There are a total of 16 core sports and a further 4 core para-sports that are competed at every games. In addition ...
, including
beach volleyball,
para triathlon and women's
rugby sevens. These sporting events took place at 14 venues in the host city, two venues in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
and one venue each in
Cairns and
Townsville.
These were the first Commonwealth Games to take place under the
Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) presidency of
Dame Louise Martin. The host city Gold Coast was announced at the CGF General Assembly in
Basseterre,
Saint Kitts, on 11 November 2011. Gold Coast became the seventh Oceanian city and the first regional city to host the Commonwealth Games. These were the eighth games to be held in
Oceania
Oceania (, , ) is a geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern and Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of and a population of around 44.5 million ...
and the
Southern Hemisphere.
The host nation
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
topped the medal table for the fourth time in the past five Commonwealth Games, winning the most golds (80) and most medals overall (198).
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
and
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
finished second and third respectively.
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of ...
,
Cook Islands
)
, image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, capital = Avarua
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Avarua
, official_languages =
, lan ...
,
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...
,
British Virgin Islands
)
, anthem = "God Save the King"
, song_type = Territorial song
, song = "Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands"
, image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg
, map_caption =
, mapsize = 290px
, image_map2 = Brit ...
and
Dominica each won their first Commonwealth Games medals.
The 2018 Commonwealth Games boosted the Queensland economy by more than $2.4 billion between 2013 and 2022.
Host selection
On 22 August 2008, the
Premier of Queensland,
Anna Bligh, officially launched Gold Coast City's bid to host the Commonwealth Games in 2018. On 7 April 2009, the
ABC reported a
land exchange A land exchange or land swap is the exchange of land between two parties, typically a private owner and a government. These parties may include farmers, estate owners, nature organizations, and governments. Land swaps may also take place between two ...
deal between Gold Coast City and
State of Queensland for
Carrara Stadium. According to Mayor
Ron Clarke
Ronald William Clarke, AO, MBE (21 February 1937 – 17 June 2015) was an Australian athlete, writer, and the Mayor of the Gold Coast from 2004 to 2012. He was one of the best-known middle- and long-distance runners in the 1960s, notable for ...
, the land would aid a potential bid for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
The land exchanged would be used as the site of an aquatics centre. In the same article, Mayor Clarke raised the question of the Australian Federal Government's commitment to a 2018 Commonwealth Games bid in light of the Government's support for
Australia's 2018 FIFA World Cup Finals bid.
On 16 April 2009, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh told reporters that a successful Commonwealth Games bid by Gold Coast City could help the tourist strip win a role in hosting the World Cup.
"Some of the infrastructure that would be built for the Commonwealth Games will be useful for Gold Coast City to get a World Cup game out of the soccer World Cup if we're successful as a nation," she said. However, the decision on the venues for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups were made eleven months prior to the bid decision for the 2018 Commonwealth Games, so the potential World Cup venues had already been chosen. On 3 June 2009, Gold Coast City was confirmed as Australia's exclusive bidder vying for the 2018 Commonwealth Games. "Should a bid proceed, Gold Coast City will have the exclusive Australian rights to bid as host city for 2018," Bligh stated.
"Recently I met with the president and CEO of the Australian Commonwealth Games Association and we agreed to commission a full and comprehensive feasibility study into the potential for the 2018 Commonwealth Games," she said. "Under the stewardship of Queensland Events new chair,
Geoff Dixon
Geoff Dixon (born 1939 in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia) is an Australian corporate executive and former CEO and managing director of Qantas.
Qantas
Geoff Dixon was appointed chief executive officer and managing director of Qantas i ...
, that study is now well advanced." On 15 March 2010, it was announced that the Queensland Government will provide initial funding of A$11 million for the 2018 Commonwealth Games bid.
The Premier of Queensland has indicated the Government's support for the bid to the Australian Commonwealth Games Association.
On 31 March 2010, the Australian Commonwealth Games Association officially launched the bid to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games. In October 2011, Gold Coast City Mayor
Ron Clarke
Ronald William Clarke, AO, MBE (21 February 1937 – 17 June 2015) was an Australian athlete, writer, and the Mayor of the Gold Coast from 2004 to 2012. He was one of the best-known middle- and long-distance runners in the 1960s, notable for ...
stated that the games would provide a strong legacy for the city after the games have ended.
On 31 March 2010, a surprise bid was made for the 2018 Commonwealth Games by the
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
n city of
Hambantota
Hambantota ( si, හම්බන්තොට, ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை) is the main town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri LankaThe prominent Malays (මැලේ) most part of the population is to be partly de ...
. Hambantota was devastated by the
2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, and is undergoing a major face lift. The first phase of the
Port of Hambantota is nearing completion and it is funded by the government of
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. The
Mattala International Airport, which is the second international Airport of Sri Lanka is built close to Hambantota. A new
Hambantota International Cricket Stadium had also been built, which had hosted matches in the
2011 Cricket World Cup
The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup was the tenth Cricket World Cup. It was played in India, Sri Lanka, and for the first time in Bangladesh. India won the tournament, defeating Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the final at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai ...
.
On 10 November 2011, the Hambantota bidders claimed they had already secured enough votes to win the hosting rights.
However, on 11 November it was officially announced
Gold Coast City had won the rights to host the games.
Development and preparation
The event was overseen by the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation (GOLDOC). The GOLDOC was formed in 2012 by the
Government of Queensland
The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutional monarchy was form ...
. Its headquarters were located in
Ashmore
Ashmore is a village and civil parish in the North Dorset district of Dorset, England, southwest of Salisbury.
The village is centred on a circular pond and has a church and several stone cottages and farms, many with thatched roofs. I ...
, a suburban region of Gold Coast. In February 2012,
Mark Peters was appointed chief executive officer of the GOLDOC. The Queensland Government Minister
Kate Jones was tasked with overseeing the Games.
Peter Beattie AC served as the Chairman of GOLDOC who was appointed on 17 May 2016 to replace Nigel Chamier
OAM.
Venues
The Gold Coast 2018 was hosted across 18 venues located on the
Gold Coast and in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
,
Townsville and
Cairns. Sporting venues were well ahead available of Gold Coast 2018 ensuring that they were used and tested before the Games. The
Australian and
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
Governments and the
City of Gold Coast invested
A$320 million to deliver new and upgraded venues.
Lendlease was the overlay delivery partner and official supporter property and infrastructure of the Games.
Venues on the Gold Coast
Carrara Stadium, located in the suburb of
Carrara, was the main venue for
Athletics
Athletics may refer to:
Sports
* Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking
** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport
* Athletics (physical culture), competi ...
, the
Opening ceremony and the
Closing ceremony
An opening ceremony, grand opening, or ribbon-cutting ceremony marks the official opening of a newly-constructed location or the start of an event. . The seating capacity of the stadium was temporarily increased to 40,000 for the games by the installation of a large temporary North Stand. The new
Carrara Sports and Leisure Centre
Gold Coast Sports and Leisure Centre is a multi-purpose arena and sports facility located at Carrara on Queensland's Gold Coast in Australia, capable of seating 5,000 fans. The centre is located adjacent to the Carrara Indoor Stadium and forms ...
hosted the
Badminton
Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...
,
Para Powerlifting,
Weightlifting
Weightlifting generally refers to activities in which people lift weights, often in the form of dumbbells or barbells. People lift various kinds of weights for a variety of different reasons. These may include various types of competition; pro ...
and
Wrestling
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...
events. The
Carrara Indoor Sports Stadium hosted the back-of-house event operations.
The
Gold Coast City Convention and Exhibition Centre, located in the suburb of
Broadbeach, hosted
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
and
Netball (preliminaries) and also served as the Main Media Centre and International Broadcast centre hosting over 3000 members of the worlds press. The
Broadbeach Bowls Club hosted the
Bowls competition.
The
Nerang Mountain Bike Trails was the location for the Mountain Bike competition. A new course was constructed to meet international competition requirements and temporary spectator seating for 2,000 spectators.
The newly built
Coomera Indoor Sports Centre
Coomera Indoor Sports Centre is an Australian entertainment and sporting arena which was built on the Gold Coast, Queensland.
History and construction
On 12 November 2011, it was announced that the Gold Coast would host the 2018 Commonwealth ...
hosted
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...
and Netball (finals). The
Oxenford Studios
Village Roadshow Studios are a set of film studios located in Oxenford, Queensland, Oxenford, Gold Coast, Queensland, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The studios are owned by Village Roadshow and consist of nine sound stages as well as a rang ...
hosted the sports of
Boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
,
Table Tennis and
Squash. During Games mode the venue was enhanced to provide for the International Sporting Federation technical venue requirements and provide spectator seating of 3,000 (boxing) and 3,200 (table tennis). The
Gold Coast Hockey Centre hosted the men's and women's
hockey events during the games. The
Southport Broadwater Parklands
The Southport Broadwater Parklands is a large community park located in Southport. It is designed for large community gatherings and families. The park has many different areas for children and barbecue areas for families. The park went through ...
hosted
Triathlon,
Marathon and
Racewalking
Racewalking, or race walking, is a long-distance discipline within the sport of athletics. Although a foot race, it is different from running in that one foot must appear to be in contact with the ground at all times. Race judges carefully asse ...
events. The
Optus aquatic centre hosted the
Swimming and
Diving events.
Robina Stadium hosted the
Rugby 7s competition and upgraded to meet World Rugby standards. The
Currumbin
Currumbin ( ) is a coastal suburb in the City of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. In the , Currumbin had a population of 2,920 people.
Geography
The suburb extends from Currumbin Creek in the north to Wyberba Street in the south. The Pac ...
Beachfront hosted the road racing elements of the cycling programme.
Coolangatta Beachfront hosted the
Beach volleyball event.
Venues outside Gold Coast
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, along with the Gold Coast, forms part of the
South East Queensland conurbation.
Track Cycling
Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles.
History
Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it ...
was held at the
Sleeman Sports Complex in the suburb of
Chandler, where a new indoor cycling velodrome (Anna Meares Velodrome) was built. The Velodrome's seat capacity was 4,000 during the games mode.
The
Shooting
Shooting is the act or process of discharging a projectile from a ranged weapon (such as a gun, bow, crossbow, slingshot, or blowpipe). Even the acts of launching flame, artillery, darts, harpoons, grenades, rockets, and guided missiles ...
disciplines were held at the
Belmont Shooting Centre. In
Tropical North Queensland, the
Cairns Convention Centre
The Cairns Convention Centre is a convention and entertainment centre in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. The venue was selected the World's Best Congress Centre in 2004 and 2014.
Description
The centre has a floor space of on a site in the C ...
and
Townsville Entertainment Centre hosted the preliminary rounds of both the men's and women's
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
competitions.
Athletes village
The Athletes Village was officially opened from 25 March 2018 and provided accommodation and services to 6,600 athletes and officials in 1252 permanent dwellings. It was located in
Southport,
Gold Coast.
There were 1170 one and two-bedroom apartments and 82 three-bedroom townhouses. The village had three zones - International, Residential and Operational.
The residential zone accommodated athletes and officials and also offered recreation, gym and medical facilities. The equipment in the gym was sponsored by
Technogym. Adjoining the gym was the Athlete Recovery Area. The International Zone consisted of retail services, shops and the main dining hall. The Festival 2018 events were also held in the International Zone. The Dining hall served over 18,000 meals per day to the athletes during the Games. Australian telecommunications company
Optus opened a store in the International zone named "Yes Optus Store" which provided free calling services to the athletes and officials and other services such as phone charging and watching events of the Games in televisions. Optus also provided free Wifi services in the village.
Financing
The sports-related costs of Gold Coast 2018 was
A$1.5 billion (
US$1.2 billion).
Countdown
The countdown clocks were unveiled on 4 April 2013, exactly five years from the opening ceremony of the games. The clocks were shaped as a surfboard and were located at the beach end of
Cavill Avenue in
Surfers Paradise and in
South Bank Parklands in
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
. The Countdown Clock was the first fixed element of the Commonwealth Games visual identity program.
Ticketing
The ticket requests began on 24 April 2017 and ended on 22 May 2017. The first round of tickets were allocated on 22 June 2017 via a computer-generated ballot system. About 70% of the people who applied for the tickets had received some or all of the tickets requested in the first phase. In Australia, ticket prices ranged from A$10 for many events to A$495 for the most expensive seats at the opening ceremony. The games expected to have 1.2 million tickets for sale. Around 1.06 million tickets were sold by 3 April 2018.
Ticketek
Ticketek is an Australian event ticketing company. Founded in 1979, the company is owned by TEG Pty Ltd with its headquarters in Sydney and operates ticketing operations for entertainment and sporting events in Australia and New Zealand. There a ...
was the provider of ticketing services for the Games.
Queen's baton relay
The Queen's baton of the 2018 Commonwealth Games had a distinctive loop design and was made of macadamia wood and recycled plastic sourced from Gold Coast waterways. Its design was inspired by the Queensland's "vibrant spirit and indigenous heritage" and with sustainability.
The design of the baton was unveiled on 20 November 2016 at a special ceremony in the
Jupiter Gold Coast hotel. The baton was designed by the Brisbane-based firm Designworks. At the 2018 Good Design Awards conducted by the Good Design Australia, the baton won the Best Product Sport and Lifestyle award.
The Queen's baton relay was launched on
Commonwealth Day, 13 March 2017, on the historic forecourt at
Buckingham Palace in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, signalling the official countdown to the start of the Games. Accompanied by the
Duke of Edinburgh and
Prince Edward, Her Majesty
Queen Elizabeth II heralded the start of the relay by placing her 'message to the Commonwealth and its athletes' into the distinctive loop-design Queen's Baton which then set off on its journey around the globe.
The baton traveled for 388 days, spending time in every nation and territory of the Commonwealth. The Gold Coast 2018 Queen's Baton Relay was the longest in Commonwealth Games history. Covering 230,000 km over 388 days, the baton made its way through the six Commonwealth regions of Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and Oceania. The baton landed on Australian soil in December 2017 and then spent 100 days travelling through Australia, finishing its journey at the
opening ceremony on 4 April 2018, where the message was removed from the Baton and read aloud by
Charles, Prince of Wales.
Tourism Australia and
QSuper sponsored the international and Australian segment of Queen's Baton Relay respectively, while
Longines sponsored both the segments.
Medals
The medals for the Games were officially unveiled at a charity gala held on 4 November 2017. Australian Indigenous artist Delvene Cockatoo-Collins designed the medals, while they were produced by the
Royal Australian Mint. The design of the medals was inspired by the coastline of
Gold Coast along with Indigenous culture.
Furthermore, Cockatoo-Collins mentioned, "the medal design represents soft sand lines which shift with every tide and wave, also symbolic of athletic achievement, The continual change of tide represents the evolution in athletes who are making their mark, Records are made and special moments of elation are celebrated". Approximately 1,500 medals were created to be distributed to the medalists and each measures approximately 63 millimetres in diameter. The medals weigh between 138 and 163 grams.
Volunteering
Over 15,000 volunteers were hired for the Games. Over 45,000 applicants applied to become a volunteer. The uniforms for the volunteers were revealed on 11 November 2017 at the
Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Former
Gold Coast Titans player
Mat Rogers who was present at the uniform showcase ceremony, said that the uniforms were "very Gold Coast" and it was like an "active wear".
Hard Yakka was the official supplier of the uniforms for the volunteers.
Transport
During the Games period, free public transportation within
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
region was provided to ticket and accreditation holders. The free transportation services were available on local buses, train and
Gold Coast light rail
G:link, also known as the Gold Coast Light Rail, is a light rail system serving the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, and is the sole light rail system in Queensland. The system forms part of the TransLink's South East Queensland publi ...
(G:link) services on the Gold Coast and on
TransLink and
Qconnect
''qconnect'' was a network of integrated public passenger transport services that cover subsidised and/or regulated bus, coach and aviation networks in Regional Queensland, Australia. It was introduced by the Queensland Government in December ...
bus services in Cairns and Townsville.
The Gold Coast light rail system, connected a number of the key games venues including the
Optus Aquatic Centre,
Broadwater Parklands and the
Gold Coast Convention & Exhibition Centre
The Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre (GCCEC) is located on the Gold Coast Highway in Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia. The venue was opened on 29 June 2004 at a cost of A$167 million and is linked by a covered walkway to The S ...
with the major accommodation centres of
Surfers Paradise and
Broadbeach and the Athletes Village at Parklands. An extension to the system was announced in October 2015, connecting the then current terminus at
Gold Coast University Hospital to the
railway line to Brisbane at
Helensvale
Helensvale is a suburb of the City of Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. In the , Helensvale had a population of 16,862 people.
Geography
Helensvale is bounded by the Pacific Motorway to the west, by the Coomera River to the north, by ...
. The extension opened in December 2017, in time for the games.
Four temporary Games lanes were introduced along the M1 and activated at different times to decrease traffic disruptions for road users. These were used by police and emergency vehicles, spectator shuttle buses and accredited Games family and athletes. The
Gold Coast Airport served as the official airport for the Games.
Security
A total of 3,500 police officers from Queensland and 4,000 security personnel from the Australian security companies MSS Security,
Wilson Security, SecureCorp and SNP were present at the Games. The
Australian Defence Force (ADF) assisted Gold Coast authorities in ensuring the security of the Games and deployed over 1,000 personnel to help with the effort.
Furthermore, Operation ATLAS was the codename for the ADF contribution to the security of the Games. The
Australian Federal Police and
Australian Border Force assisted the
Queensland Police Service (QPS) who were the lead agency of the Games' security. American cyber security software company
Symantec Symantec may refer to:
*An American consumer software company now known as Gen Digital Inc.
*A brand of enterprise security software purchased by Broadcom Inc.
Broadcom Inc. is an American designer, developer, manufacturer and global supplier ...
provided IT and cyber security services for the Games.
Anti-doping
The
Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority conducted an anti-doping drive in the months prior to the Games, covering around 2500 tests of Australian athletes, as well as 500 tests against international athletes. Three Australians failed drug tests in this process, along with around 20 international athletes, subject to appeal. The Commonwealth Games Federation conducted in-competition testing and, matching protocol at the
Olympic Games
The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a multi ...
, launched a sample storage initiative to allow for future testing of samples up to ten years later, should detection technology improve.
Festival 2018
The Festival 2018 was a 12-day multi-arts program for the 2018 Commonwealth Games which included free musical performances, activities, public art and other family-friendly events. The program took place at
Surfers Paradise and
Broadbeach on the Gold Coast, Cultural Forecourt,
South Bank in Brisbane, Lagoon Precinct in Cairns and
Jezzine Barracks, Strand Park and
Queens Gardens Queens Gardens or Queen's Gardens may refer to:
* Queen's Gardens, Kingston upon Hull – gardens in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England
* Queen's Gardens (Croydon) – gardens in south London, England
* Queen's Gardens, Westminster – gardens i ...
in Townsville.
Sustainability
The GOLDOC delivered the event with a focus on
sustainability
Specific definitions of sustainability are difficult to agree on and have varied in the literature and over time. The concept of sustainability can be used to guide decisions at the global, national, and individual levels (e.g. sustainable livi ...
under the guidance of the
ISO 20121 event sustainability management system and the
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) framework Sustainability Reporting Standards. The GOLDOC received the Sustainability Award in the Australian Business Awards 2016 for focusing on sustainable practices and planning in the preparation of the games. The GOLDOC headquarters received the 4 Star Green Star – Interiors PILOT rating from the Green Building Council of Australia. The new
Anna Meares Velodrome, built specifically for the games, is the first velodrome in the world to have full LED broadcast-quality lighting that cuts energy consumption by up to 60% and reduces running costs and carbon emissions.
Opening ceremony
The opening ceremony was held at
Carrara Stadium on the Gold Coast, between 20:00 and 22:40 AEST, on 4 April 2018. The
Head of the Commonwealth, Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...
, was represented by her son,
Charles, Prince of Wales.
David Zolkwer
David Zolkwer is a producer and director of public events and ceremonies and corporate brand activation experiences.
Early career
Following an early career working in theatre in London, Zolkwer was employed in the corporate and public events ...
was its artistic director, with music direction by
Katie Noonan. Live musical performers included Christine Anu, Delta Goodrem,
Katie Noonan, Ricki-Lee Coulter and Ruel (singer), Ruel who performed "Golden Years" as the closing act. The ceremony transmitted live on Channel 7 Australia, Channel 7 attracted a peak viewing audience of over 2 million in Australia.
Closing ceremony
The closing ceremony was held at Carrara Stadium on Sunday 15 April and was produced by Jack Morton Worldwide at a cost of AU$30 million. Australian pop stars Guy Sebastian, Samantha Jade, Dami Im, Ricki-Lee Coulter, Ricki Lee and The Veronicas were among the performers.
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, declared the Games closed and passed the Commonwealth Games flag to Birmingham, England which will host the 2022 Commonwealth Games, 2022 Games.
The Games
Participating Commonwealth Games Associations
There were 71 Commonwealth Games Associations competing at 2018 Commonwealth Games. Maldives were scheduled to participate, but in October 2016 they withdrew from the
Commonwealth.
The Gambia
The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...
returned to the Commonwealth Games after being readmitted as a
Commonwealth Games Federation member on 31 March 2018.
It marked the last time that Swaziland participated in the games before being renamed as Eswatini.
Number of athletes by Commonwealth Games Association
Sports
The 2018 Commonwealth Games featured 18 different sports encompassing 23 disciplines and 275 events. In the list below, the number of events in each discipline is noted in parentheses.
The regulations stated that from the 26 approved sports administered by Commonwealth Sport governing body, Governing Bodies, a minimum of ten core sports and maximum of seventeen sports must be included in any Commonwealth Games schedule.
The approved sports included the 10 core sports: Sport of athletics, athletics, badminton, boxing, Field hockey, hockey, lawn bowls, netball (for women),
rugby sevens, Squash (sport), squash, List of water sports, swimming and Olympic weightlifting, weightlifting. Integrated Disabled sports, disabled competitions were also scheduled for the Games in six sports: swimming, athletics, cycling, table tennis, powerlifting and lawn bowls. Along with these events for the first time EAD events in triathlon were held, with the medals added to the final tally for each nation. A record 38 para events were contested at these games. On 8 March 2016,
beach volleyball was announced as the 18th sport.
The program was broadly similar to that of the 2014 Commonwealth Games, with the major changes being the dropping of judo, the reintroduction of
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
, the debut of women's rugby sevens and beach volleyball.
On 7 October 2016, it was announced seven new events for women were added to the sport program, meaning there are an equal number of events for men and women. This marks the first time in history that a major
multi-sport event has equality in terms of events. In total 275 events in 18 sports are being contested.
Calendar
Medal table
Only the top ten most successful nations are displayed here.
Podium sweeps
Broadcasting
NEP Group, NEP Australia was the host broadcaster of the event. It produced High-definition video, high definition coverage of the event and delivered to the rights-holding broadcasters of other nations. In Australia, the games were broadcast live on three Seven Network channels - 7HD, 7TWO and 7mate, 7Mate.
In the United Kingdom, BBC provided Commonwealth Games coverage of more than 200 hours across BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Red Button, BBC Sport website, BBC iPlayer and BBC Radio, BBC radio.
ESPN provided the games coverage for viewers in the USA.
Sony Pictures Networks India broadcast the games for the viewers in India on three channels - Sony Six, Sony Ten#Sony Ten 2, Sony Ten 2 in English and Sony Ten#Sony Ten 3, Sony Ten 3 in Hindi.
Flow (brand), Flow Sports provided games coverage in the Caribbean countries and territories such as Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago along Turks and Caicos. Flow Sports provided coverage of the event on Flow Sports 1, Flow Sports 2 and up to three additional "Flow Sports Extra" channels.
The New Zealand government funded Pacific Cooperation Broadcasting Limited (PCBL) broadcast the event on Pasifika TV in the
Oceania
Oceania (, , ) is a geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern and Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of and a population of around 44.5 million ...
n countries such as Cook Islands, Fiji, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, Kiribati and Tuvalu.
Marketing
Motto
The official motto for the 2018 Commonwealth Games was "Share the Dream". It was chosen to highlight the dreams and experience at the games that were shared by participants of the games, ranging from athletes to volunteers and the host country Australia to the world including the Commonwealth nations.
Emblem
The emblem was launched on 4 April 2013, which marked exactly five years until its opening ceremony. It was unveiled at the
Southport Broadwater Parklands
The Southport Broadwater Parklands is a large community park located in Southport. It is designed for large community gatherings and families. The park has many different areas for children and barbecue areas for families. The park went through ...
. It was designed by the New South Wales based brand consultancy WiteKite. The emblem of the 2018 Commonwealth Games was a silhouette of the skyline and landscape of Gold Coast, the host city of the games. Nigel Chamier
Order of Australia, OAM, former Chairman of the GOLDOC, said that it was the result of months of market research.
Mascot
Borobi was named as the mascot of the 2018 Commonwealth Games in 2016. Borobi is a blue koala, with indigenous markings on its body. The term "borobi" means koala in the Yugambeh language, spoken by the indigenous Yugambeh people of the Gold Coast and surrounding areas. The song
''Days of Gold'' composed by the Australian Duo band Busby Marou, which was released on 17 October 2014, was considered as the official song of the Mascot Borobi.
Sponsors
The official partners of the games were The Star Gold Coast, Griffith University, TAFE Queensland,
Longines,
Optus, Atos and Woolworths Supermarkets. Griffith University was also the Creative Arts partner of the games and Presenting partner of the Gold Coast Marathon. TAFE Queensland was responsible for providing vocational education and training program for the volunteers of the games.
Longines served as the official timekeeper of the games.
Music
Australian singer Delta Goodrem wrote the song "Welcome to Earth (song), Welcome to Earth", which is about the planet Earth and the theme of the opening ceremony. She performed the song live during the ceremony and was worldwide praised. The song was worldwide released on 5 April 2018 in Delta Goodrem's official YouTube channel.
Concerns and controversies
Team
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
violated the Games No-needle policy two times. Just two days before the opening of the Games, a cleaner found needles in a bottle in the Athletes' Village. The Games official found that the syringes belonged to an Indian doctor which he used to inject vitamin B12, vitamin B
12 to an Indian athlete and did not dispose them properly after using them and violated the Games no-needle policy. As a result, the Indian team officials received serious warnings from the Games officials. Later two Indian athletes were suspended from the Games as needles were found in their apartment which was also against the Games policy.
At least 13 athletes from four countries - Cameroon at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Cameroon, Uganda at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Uganda, Rwanda at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Rwanda, and Sierra Leone at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Sierra Leone - absconded during or immediately after the Games. Some missed their competitions. A month after the games ended, officials estimated that 50 athletes had remained in Australia illegally, with another 200 staying in the country on visas. In October 2019, it was found from the official documents that the Department of Home Affairs (Australia), Department of Home Affairs had rejected the asylum claims of 217 out of 230 athletes. The official documents also found that 17 "unlawful non-citizens" who took part in the Commonwealth Games were still in Australia, 14 of which were from Ghana and Rwanda. A total of 13 remain unaccounted for, while four were in detention.
The organising committee of the Games decided to bring in the athletes before the start of the closing ceremony. This caused an uproar on social media as, contrary to public expectations, none of the athletes were shown entering the stadium during the ceremony. Broadcast rights holders Seven Network, Channel 7 complained on air about the decision and concluded that, "it hasn't really lived up to expectations". Many spectators and athletes left during the ceremony, resulting in a half-empty stadium for much of the event. Following this, the ABC News (Australia), ABC claimed that Channel 7 was briefed on the closing ceremony schedule, a claim which Channel 7 later refuted.
Legacy
Queensland's economy boost
Predictions by Griffith University estimated that the Games are estimated to deliver a $2.5 billion rise to the Economy of Queensland, economy of
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, including $1.8 billion to the Gold Coast.
Events
The city hosted the 17th Sport Accord, Sport Accord World Sport and Business Summit from 5 to 10 May 2019 at the
Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
Premier of Queensland, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced on 9 December 2019 that the state of Queensland would make an official bid for the 2032 Summer Olympics featuring venues across
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Sunshine Coast.
Without rival cities, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded the 2032 Olympics to Brisbane.
See also
*Commonwealth Games celebrated in Australia
**1938 British Empire Games, 1938 Commonwealth Games – Sydney
** 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, 1962 Commonwealth Games – Perth
** 1982 Commonwealth Games – Brisbane
** 2006 Commonwealth Games - Melbourne
** 2026 Commonwealth Games - Victoria State
*Commonwealth Youth Games celebrated in Australia
** 2004 Commonwealth Youth Games – Bendigo
*Olympic Games celebrated in Australia
** 1956 Summer Olympics – Melbourne
** 2000 Summer Olympics – Sydney
** 2032 Summer Olympics – Brisbane
*Paralympic Games celebrated in Australia
** 2000 Summer Paralympics – Sydney
** 2032 Summer Paralympics – Brisbane
* Deaflympics celebrated in Australia
** 2005 Summer Deaflympics – Melbourne
References
External links
"Gold Coast 2018" ''Thecgf.com''. Commonwealth Games Federation.
"Results and Medalists—2018 Commonwealth Games" ''Gc2018.com''. Gold Coast 2018.
"Post Games Report—2018 Commonwealth Games". ''Thecgf.com''. Commonwealth Games Federation.
"Official Website" ''Gc2018.com''. Gold Coast 2018.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Commonwealth Games, 2018
2018 Commonwealth Games,
Commonwealth Games by year, 2018
2018 in multi-sport events, Commonwealth Games
Sports competitions on the Gold Coast, Queensland
Commonwealth Games in Australia, 2018
2018 in Australian sport
April 2018 sports events in Australia