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In 1891, an every-four-year athletic event was proposed by Rev. Astley Cooper as a goodwill effort for nations within the British Empire. Upon approval, the first event, the Inter-Empire Championships, became part of the coronation of King George V in 1911. Teams from the United Kingdom, Canada, South Africa and Australia competed in boxing, wrestling, track and field (athletics) and swimming.
After years of organizing an official Olympic-style event based on the format used in 1911, the first of what would become the Commonwealth Games was held in 1930 in Hamilton, Ontario. Then called the British Empire Games, the competition included six sports: boxing, rowing, swimming and diving, lawn bowling, track and field, and wrestling. Four-hundred athletes from England, Bermuda, Canada, Australia, Guyana, Newfoundland, New Zealand, South Africa, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland participated in the first official event. - The name of the competition was changed to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games for the 1954 event held in Vancouver, British Columbia. The next five tournaments would carry this name through the 1966 Kingston, Jamaica, competition, which by then had grown to include 42 countries and more than 1,300 athletes. From 1970 to 1974, the Games were known as the British Commonwealth Games. The 1978 games, which included 35 participating countries and more than 1,400 athletes, was held in Edinburgh, Scotland, and marked the first event under its current name.
- From 1930 to 1994, the Commonwealth Games included only single-competition sporting events. In 1998, team sports of ice hockey, cricket, netball and rugby 7s were added. Basketball was introduced in 2006. Elite athletes with disabilities began competing in full-medal competition in 2002.
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Today more than 4,000 athletes representing more than 65 countries in Europe, Asia, the Americas, Caribbean, Australian Islands (Oceania region) and Africa compete every four years in the Commonwealth Games. Twenty-five sports are recognized, deemed optional or are part of a core lineup of events by tournament officials.
The 2010 Commonwealth Games are scheduled to be held Oct. 3 through 14 in New Delhi, India. The Commonwealth Games Federation is headquartered in London. - In 2000, the first Commonwealth Youth Games were held in Edinburgh, Scotland, with more than 700 athletes age 14 to 18 from 14 countries competing in eight sports. The Commonwealth Youth Games are also held every four years outside of adult Commonwealth and Olympic Games years. In 2008, young athletes from 71 countries competed in India. The next Commonwealth Youth Games will be held on the Isle of Man in 2011.
