SL gearing up for 2026 Commonwealth Games bid

National Olympic Committee Sri Lanka (NOCSL) is bracing themselves to bid to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games, as Hamilton (Canada)the city which was on run, set to back out, leaving no confirmed host for the game which is six years away.

Sri Lanka was keen to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games (CWG), but their bid was beaten by Gold Coast(Australia),shattering Sri Lanka’s hopes and also plans for infrastructure development in Hambanthota back then.

Birmingham (England) had already clinched the 2022 Games and Hamilton the 2026 Games, with India looking at 2030. Sri Lanka did not have a window for a bid throughout the next decade.

But with Hamilton facing problems over the bid, Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) were on the lookout for a new host. Ontario Province’s Minister of Heritage and Sport Lisa MacLeod has publicly announced that the Government will support Hamilton’s bid but not in 2026,giving any other interested City the best chance to grab the hosting rights.

“We are keen and capable of handling the bid process and hosting if Government permits. We have a rough estimation and we are seeking Government guidance about expenditure, and if we receive thegreen light we will go ahead with the bid,”said a senior NOC official.

A rough estimation based on previous Games indicates about USD 650 million operation cost for running the Games, and a further USD 300 million minimum infrastructure cost for the Games, which NOCSL will present to the Government to get their blessings.

“Capital expenditure will be an investment for the country’s sports, especially when we look at theBirmingham 2022 plans of buildinga fully-fledged international sports university with all facilities for the Games, which will help in hosting events as well accommodation of athletes and officials,” said the NOCSL official.

Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa has already shared his views abou tthe need fora modern day international sports university to uplift sports in the country, as well as building a billion dollar sports economy, which are tallying with hosting international games such as CWG, which gives a Government means to build modern infrastructure and uplift sporting talent of the country with a proper plan.

Sri Lanka’s plan to host 2018 Commonwealth Games did not went as planned

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka can also get guidance from the last commonwealth Games(2018), where post-Games reports clearly show that overall benefit from the Games exceeded the expenditure for the Games.

Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, which was the most extravagant CWG to date,cost Australian dollars 1.286 billion, but the extensive analytical post-Games report shows that overall boost to the Queensland economy as a direct result of the Games was awhopping A$2.5 billion. This is apart from benefits which local athletes will get over the years from new infrastructure built for the Games, which also helped their successful bid to host the 2032 Summer Olympic Games.

“Several Asian countries have already hosted mega multisport events. Indonesia, who hosted the 2018 Asian Games, is now in the runningto host the 2032 Olympics Games. India too is keen on bidding for 2032 Olympic Games and 2030 Asian Games. These Games help a lot to develop a country’ssports and to build a sports loving society in the country, which cannot be financially valued,” said a senior sports official who is supporting a possible bid .