2030 Commonwealth Games?

[SteelTown]

Hamilton re-confirms support of 2030 Commonwealth Games bid

https://www.insauga.com/hamilton-re-...e-_Yj2BezkQoQ4

On Monday afternoon, city council’s general issues committee (GIC), including representatives who are not seeking re-election this fall, voted 12-2 in favour of upgrading Hamilton’s memorandum of understanding with the Hamilton100 Commonwealth Games Bid Corporation. The first MOU with Hamilton100, which is headed by Carmen’s Group CEO P.J. Mercanti, was signed in 2019.

Mercanti is also a leader with the Hamilton Urban Precinct Entertainment Group (HUPEG), which is redeveloping FirstOntario Centre arena, FirstOntario Concert Hall and the Hamilton Convention Centre.

The new MOU is described by Tourism Hamilton as “supportive and non-binding involvement in the bid process.” The city and Hamilton100 are, per an appendix to Monday’s staff report, “not entering into a partnership, joint venture, agency relationship or any other business arrangement, nor is the intent of the Parties to enter into a commercial undertaking for monetary gain.”

For the time being, the city will “advocate for provincial and federal financial support” for the 2030 CWG bid. It will also provide a letter of endorsement, which is presumably timely since Mercanti and fellow Hamilton100 executive Lou Frapporti will be attending the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England to talk up the Hamilton bid.

....

Ten days ago, however, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek MPP Neil Lumdsden was named the sports minister in the Premier Doug Ford-led Ontario PC Party government. Lumsden is a former sports administrator, who led the 2003 World Road Track Cycling Championships in Hamilton.

[craftbeerdad]

Good thing we have all those hotels for athletes to stay in haha. Better let Vranich build some more commie block hotels for these elite athletes to stay in!

[king10]

Originally Posted by craftbeerdad

Good thing we have all those hotels for athletes to stay in haha. Better let Vranich build some more commie block hotels for these elite athletes to stay in!

wouldn't they use McMaster and Mohawk dorms for the most part?

Athletes at major games rarely stay in hotels.

[craftbeerdad]

Usually they build athletes village for games, and repurpose afterwards. In this case I can't remember if that was part of the proposal. I was just being facetious more than anything else. Our city is missing so many amenities and we have greater areas of focus than a third rate Olympic competition.

[Berklon]

Waste of time and money.

Remember the last Commonwealth games when *insert country here* won the most medals, and *insert athlete name here* dominated *insert event here* to take home all those medals?
Canada did ok winning *insert medal count* medals.
*Insert host country* did a great job at hosting the games.

Without an internet search, can anyone actually fill in the blanks?

[thistleclub]

Martin Regg Cohn in yesterday's Star:

Born as the British Commonwealth, rebranded to drop its British antecedents, it remains a misnomer in search of a mission — a membership of 54 countries with nothing in common beyond the Commonwealth branding.

Neither democracy nor diversity are prerequisites (homosexuality remains illegal or unaccepted in many member states). A shared history of royalty — which could truly be said, in colonial times, to be the ties that bind (and shackle) — no longer hold true.

Today any country, from any continent, can apply for entry. Which explains how a human rights abuser like Rwanda came to join the club in recent years, proudly claiming the right to host this year’s summit.

Once a creature of the crown, the club purports to be a family of nations — yet without shared parentage or purpose. Queen Elizabeth is nominally head of the Commonwealth by consensus, but in declining health she has essentially handed the reins to her son Prince Charles in the manner of a hereditary reign.

In Rwanda, assorted potentates, presidents and prime ministers listened as the heir to the throne shared his regal vision of world peace and comity. All this against the backdrop of war and aggression in Ukraine, about which the group could not bring itself to pass judgement.…

Why do we maintain the pretence of relevance for so forlorn a footnote to history? The Commonwealth has become a club so convoluted and contrived that almost no one noticed it hadn’t held a summit over the past four years.

[matt602]

I'd like to believe this is finally the death of this but somehow I doubt it.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by matt602

I'd like to believe this is finally the death of this but somehow I doubt it.

I was ok with it, so long as no public city money was involved. But the federal and provincial governments have zero interest in this kind of thing right now and no appetite or capacity to help in a big way (and yes, there is only one taxpayer, so we'd have been paying regardless of city funding)

At least it's only been a mild distraction to this point.

I wonder if *any* Canadian bid will be put forward. World perceptions about The Commonwealth have probably taken a dive too... so the relevance of these "games" may be even lower now.

[King&James]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/commonwealth-games/66405359

So looks like Calgary /Edmonton backed out of 2030. Australia is punting 2026. What a mess.