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Commonwealth Games Australia

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Commonwealth Games Australia
AbbreviationCGA
PredecessorAustralian Commonwealth Games Association
HeadquartersMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Patron in Chief
His Excellency General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) (Governor General of the Commonwealth of Australia)
Patron
Anthony Albanese (Prime Minister of Australia)
President
Ben Houston
Chief Executive Officer
Craig Phillips
Websitecommonwealthgames.com.au

Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) is the Commonwealth Games Association for Australia, and is responsible for representing and promoting the Commonwealth Sport movement in the country, and organises the participation of athletes at the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games. It changed it name from the Australian Commonwealth Games Association to Commonwealth Games Australia in 2015. The Commonwealth Games have been held in Australia five times, most recently the 2018 Commonwealth Games were held on the Gold Coast, Queensland.

Role

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Logo of the Commonwealth Games Federation
Part of a series on
2018 Commonwealth Games

The CGA is one of 72 Commonwealth Games Associations currently recognised by the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF).

Working with the national governing bodies of each sport, Commonwealth Games Australia selects Team Australia's members to compete in all sports at the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games. The CGA is independent and receives no funding from the government. The non-profit organisation's income comes from fundraising and events.[1]

Administration

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It was established in October 1929 as the Australian British Empire Games Committee with E.S. Marks as chairman and James. S.W. Eve as honorary secretary. It has also known as Australian British Empire Games Association, Australian British Empire & Commonwealth Association, Australian British Commonwealth Games Association and Australian Commonwealth Games Association.

Australian British Empire Games Committee (1929–1932)

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Dates Chairman Honorary Secretary-Treasurer
October 1929 E.S.Marks James Eve

Australian British Empire Games Association (1932–1953)

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Dates Chairman Honorary Secretary-Treasurer
October 1932 E.S.Marks James Eve
June 1938-1949 E.S.Marks* James Eve
February 1949 Harold Alderson James Eve
January 1951 Harold Alderson James Eve

(*) died in 1947

Australian British Empire & Commonwealth Association (1953–1966)

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Dates Chairman Honorary Secretary-Treasurer
June 1953-1965 Harold Alderson James Eve
June 1965-1968 Harold Alderson James Eve

Australian British Commonwealth Games Association (1966–1974)

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Dates Chairman Honorary Secretary-Treasurer
November 1968 Harold Alderson James Eve
November 1969-1973 Harold Alderson Arthur Tunstall

Australian Commonwealth Games Association (1974–2015)

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Dates Chairman Honorary Secretary-Treasurer
June 1974-1977 Edgar Tanner Arthur Tunstall
1977-1979 William Young Arthur Tunstall
1979-1987 Les Martyn Arthur Tunstall
1987-1998 Ray Godkin Arthur Tunstall
Dates President General Manager
1998-November 1999 Sam Coffa Perry Crosswhite
Dates President Chief Executive Officer
1999-2015 Sam Coffa Perry Crosswhite

Commonwealth Games Australia (2015–)

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Dates President Chief Executive Officer
2015-2018 Sam Coffa Craig Phillips
2018- Ben Houston Craig Phillips

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Aims

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The main functions of the CGA are to:

  • Promote the ideals of the Commonwealth Games throughout Australia;
  • Prepare athletes for the Games by providing support such as funding for international competition;
  • Select athletes, coaches, managers, medical personnel and officials to be included in the Australian Team at the Games;
  • Coordinate and manage the participation of Program Sports and their respective athletes and officials at the Commonwealth Games;
  • Contribute to the development of Australia's high performance junior athletes through the Australian Junior Commonwealth Games Squad Program (AJCGS), and through participation in the Commonwealth Youth Games.

History

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Further information: Australia at the Commonwealth Games


From the concept of "a British Empire Sports Festival" by the Englishman, J Astley Cooper,[3] the idea was promoted in Australia by B J Parkinson [4] in Victoria and Richard Coombes in New South Wales who was President of the Amateur Athletic Union of Australia.[5]Australia has won the medal tally at 13 Commonwealth games.

Australia first competed at the Games, then titled the British Empire Games, in 1930; and is one of only six countries to have sent athletes to every Commonwealth Games. The others are Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales.

Six of the 21 games have been hosted by Australia, with the city of Gold Coast hosting the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

Australia has placed first at 13 out of the 21 games (compared with England 7 and Canada 1) and has been in the top three for all meets except the first games in 1930.

In all but one of the 18 Commonwealth Games held so far (excluding the 1978 Games), the Australian flag bearer has gone on to win a gold medal.[6]

Games Staged

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Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games on four occasions but have only won once via an international vote. That vote was for the host of the 2018 games, won by the Gold Coast.

Sydney 1938 was simply awarded.

Perth 1962 was a contest between Adelaide and Perth which Adelaide originally won at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. Adelaide first won 13 votes to Perth's 3. Two years later that was overturned by the Australian Commonwealth Games Association prior to the 1958 British Empire Games in Cardiff, Wales. A New Vote awarded Perth with a 9 to 7 vote.

Brisbane 1982 was awarded after Lagos, Nigeria; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Birmingham, England all withdrew prior to the Bid vote that took place in Montreal, Quebec, Canada during the 1976 Summer Olympics.

Melbourne 2006 was awarded to the city after Wellington, New Zealand withdrew their bid prior to the Bid Lodgement Deadline.

Year Host City, State Years Between
2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Queensland 12
2006 Commonwealth Games Melbourne, Victoria 24
1982 Commonwealth Games Brisbane, Queensland 20
1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games Perth, Western Australia 24
1938 British Empire Games Sydney, New South Wales -

Failed bid Results

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Year Australian Candidate City Winning City Vote Tally
1974 Commonwealth Games Melbourne Christchurch 2-36
1998 Commonwealth Games Adelaide Kuala Lumpur 25-40

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "About Commonwealth Games Australia Association". Commonwealth Games Australia. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
  2. ^ Australian Commonwealth Games Association (2014). Australian team : Glasgow 2014, handbook 23 July - 3 August. Melbourne: Australian Commonwealth Games Association.
  3. ^ "PAN-BRITANNIC GAMES". The Referee. Sydney: National Library of Australia. 25 January 1899. p. 10. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  4. ^ "OLYMPIC COUNCILS". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 27 January 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  5. ^ Henniker, Garth; Jobling, Ian F (November 1989), "Richard Coombes and the Olympic movement in Australia: imperialism and nationalism in action", Sporting Traditions, 6 (1): 2–15, ISSN 0813-2577
  6. ^ "Saville to carry Commonwealth Games flag". Archived from the original on 30 March 2007. Retrieved 30 March 2006.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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