India’s Ahmedabad to stage 2030 Commonwealth Games

AFP | London

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The Indian city of Ahmedabad will stage the 2030 multi-sport Commonwealth Games, it was confirmed on Wednesday.

The choice of Ahmedabad, also known as Amdavad, was ratified by the Commonwealth Sport General Assembly in Glasgow following a recommendation from the executive board. “We are deeply honoured by the trust shown by Commonwealth Sport,” said Dr PT Usha, president of the Commonwealth Games Association of India.

“The 2030 Games will not only celebrate 100 years of the Commonwealth movement but also lay the foundation for the next century. It will bring together athletes, communities and cultures from across the Commonwealth in a spirit of friendship and progress.”

Ahmedabad is the key city in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat, home to a 130,000-seater arena which is the world’s biggest cricket stadium. The venue is named after the Indian premier.

India has its eyes on a bigger prize, having submitted a formal letter of intent last year to the International Olympic Committee to host the 2036 Summer Olympics.

The future existence of the Commonwealth Games was in doubt last year when the movement struggled to find a replacement host for 2026 after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew for cost reasons.

The Scottish city of Glasgow stepped in and will stage a slimmed-down version of the multi-sport format, meaning that Britain will have hosted two editions in a row, after Birmingham in 2022.