The Commonwealth 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, have successively run every four years since. The event was 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. 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 became the first global multi-sport event to have more events for women than men.
The 2002 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XVII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Manchester 2002, was an international multi-sport event for the members of the Commonwealth held in Manchester, England, from 25 July to 4 August 2002. The event was to be hosted in the United Kingdom to coincide with the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II, head of the Commonwealth, and Manchester was selected for the 2002 Games ahead of London using a recycled part of the project, which lost the 2000 Summer Olympics and Paralympics to Sydney, Australia. The 2002 Commonwealth Games was, prior to the 2012 Summer Olympics, the largest multi-sport event ever to be held in the UK, eclipsing the London 1948 Summer Olympics in terms of teams and athletes participating. The 2002 Commonwealth Games had the largest number of events of any Commonwealth Games in history, featuring 281 events across 17 sports.
The 1930 British Empire Games was the inaugural edition of what now is known as the Commonwealth Games, and was held in Hamilton, Ontario, from 16 to 23 August 1930.
The 1934 British Empire Games was the second edition of what is now known as the Commonwealth Games, held in England, from 4–11 August 1934. The host city was London, with the main venue at Wembley Park, although the track cycling events were in Manchester. Seventeen national teams took part, including the Irish Free State.
The 1938 British Empire Games was the third British Empire Games, the event that evolved to become the Commonwealth Games. Held in Sydney, Australia from 5–12 February 1938, they were timed to coincide with Sydney's sesqui-centenary. Venues included the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Sydney Sports Ground, North Sydney Olympic Pool and Henson Park. An estimated 40,000 people attended the opening ceremony. A competitors' residential village was established within the grounds of the Sydney Showground.
The 1950 British Empire Games was the fourth staging 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 third edition of the games. A documentary film of the games was made by the New Zealand National Film Unit. 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.
Empire Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium that stood at the Pacific National Exhibition site at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Track and field and Canadian football, as well as soccer, rugby and musical events, were held at the stadium. The stadium was originally constructed for the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games. The stadium hosted both Elvis Presley and The Beatles. It saw most of its use as the home of the BC Lions of the CFL from 1954 to 1982, in which the venue also played host to the first Grey Cup game held west of Ontario in 1955. Empire Stadium also hosted the Grey Cup game in 1958, 1960, 1963, 1966, 1971, and 1974; seven times in total.
John Michael Landy was an Australian middle-distance runner and state governor. He was the second man to break the four-minute mile barrier in the mile run and held the world records for the 1500-metre run and the mile race. He was also the 26th Governor of Victoria from 2001 to 2006.
The 1958 British Empire and Commonwealth Games was held in Cardiff, Wales, from 18 to 26 July 1958.
Canada has participated in every Commonwealth Games since the first ever British Empire Games held in Hamilton, Ontario in 1930, one of only six countries to have done so. The others are Australia, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales.
There have been a wide variety of sports in Vancouver since the city was founded. Team sports such as ice hockey, lacrosse, and Canadian football have extensive history in the area, while the city's relatively mild climate and geographical location facilitate a wide variety of other sports and recreational activities.
James Henry Peters was a long-distance runner from England. He broke the world record for the men's marathon four times in the 1950s. He was the first runner to complete a marathon in under 2 hours 20 minutes – an achievement which was equated to the breaking of the four-minute mile. He achieved this at the Polytechnic Marathon of 1953, a point-to-point race from Windsor to Chiswick, West-London. Later the same year Peters set the first sub-2:20 clocking on an out-and-back course, at the Enschede Marathon in the Netherlands.
New Zealand at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games was represented by a team of 56 competitors and nine officials. Selection of the team for the Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, was the responsibility of the New Zealand Olympic and British Empire Games Association. New Zealand's flagbearer at the opening ceremony was Max Carr. The New Zealand team finished fifth on the medal table, winning a total of 19 medals, seven of which were gold.
This is a timeline of the history of Vancouver.
At the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games, the athletics events were held at Empire Stadium in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in July and August 1954. A total of 29 athletics events were contested at the Games, 20 by men and 9 by women. A total of twenty-four Games records were set or improved over the competition, leaving just five previous best marks untouched. The 1954 edition saw the introduction of the shot put and discus throw for women, as well as the first 4×110 yards relay for women.
Lorne Atkinson was a Canadian cyclist. He competed in four events at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Nicknamed "Ace", Atkinson spent his life involved in cycling in the Vancouver area.
Charles Terence "Terry" Tobacco was a Canadian Olympic athlete.
Barbara Ethel McAulay Donnet was an Australian diver. She competed in the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games and the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games.
The men's 1 mile event at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games was held on 6 and 7 August at the Empire Stadium in Vancouver, Canada.
The men's marathon event at the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games was held on 7 July in Vancouver, Canada with a start and finish at the Empire Stadium.
