Birmingham is hosting the 22nd edition of an event that harks back to the heyday of the British Empire.
The first Commonwealth Games, known initially as the British Empire Games, were held in Hamilton, Canada, in 1930.
Since then, the Games have been held in many of the major Commonwealth countries. Canada held them again in Vancouver in 1954, Edmonton in 1978 and Victoria in 1994. Australia has also held the Games on four occasions: Sydney in 1938, Perth in 1962, Brisbane in 1982 and Melbourne in 2006.
In 1998, Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia was the first Asian country to play host. In 2010, the Games returned to Asia when they were held in Delhi. The next iteration is in Birmingham in the UK, starting this week.
Staging another event in a seemingly overpacked sporting calendar raises questions about the Commonwealth Games’ relevance, especially given its colonial roots.
“In recent times, our federation has done a lot of soul-searching to look at our impact and meaning,” Dame Louise Martin, Commonwealth Games Federation president, said in 2018.
“The Commonwealth Sport Movement reached a challenging chapter in its existence — when the very word and purpose of the ‘Commonwealth’ was questioned and…