The Executive Board of Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has approved a 24-hour change in start date for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
A statement on the CGF website indicated that the Games would now hold from July 28, 2022 to Aug. 8, 2022.
The announcement was made by both the CGF and the Birmingham 2022 Organising Committee, and it has come after a significant negative impact on the international sports calendar by COVID-19.
“This slight adjustment to the schedule is the result of multiple collaborative discussions between the leaders of some of the world’s major sports events.
“It ensures that Birmingham 2022 will now boast two full weekends of Commonwealth Sports while extending the rest and recovery period for those athletes competing in the World Athletics Championships.
“The alteration to the opening ceremony date also avoids a potential clash with the semi-finals of the recently-rescheduled UEFA Women’s Football Championships, helping to protect and promote the profile of women’s sports.
“The UEFA Women’s Football Championships will further enhance the ever-growing popularity of women’s football, while Birmingham 2022 is expected to be the first major multi-sports event in history to have more women’s medal events than men’s events, ” the statement read.
It added that the global health pandemic had caused many major sports competitions to be cancelled or postponed.
“This includes both the World Athletics Championships, scheduled for Oregon in the U.S., and the UEFA Women’s Football Championships, billed for England.
“Both events have now moved by 12 months from 2021 and will take place in July 2022.
“The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, the World Athletics Championships, the UEFA Women’s Football Championships, and the multi-sports European Championships will now all be held over an exciting six-week period during the Summer of 2022,’’ the statement added.
