Birmingham to take event to the next level

Birmingham 2022 will take the Commonwealth Games to the next level, according to the organisation’s chief executive David Grevemberg.

Women’s Twenty20 cricket, beach volleyball and para table tennis were added to the 2022 Commonwealth Games programme yesterday, ensuring Birmingham will host the first major multi-sport event to feature more women’s medal events than men’s.

There will be 135 medals available for women and 133 for men, and Birmingham 2022 will also set a new games record of eight para sports.

“What we started in 2015 was the creation of a new strategic vision for the organisation,” Grevemberg told PA.

“That strategic plan was called ‘Transformation 2022’ and we’re really confident that Birmingham is going to be a seminal moment in the history of the Commonwealth Games.”

The 71 Commonwealth Games Associations voted in favour of adding the three sports for the competition, taking the number in Birmingham to 19.

Women’s T20 cricket will be staged at Edgbaston, where eight teams will compete.

Men’s cricket debuted at the 1998 Commonwealth Games at Kuala Lumpur, but will not be present in Birmingham because of the congested nature of the international calendar.

Grevemberg said: “Women’s T20 cricket is a nice match for us with the growing commercialisation of the sport.

“The T20 World Cup in 2015 was a huge success, with a soldout final at Lord’s as well as some amazing digital stats and general viewership.

“Beach volleyball made its debut on the Gold Coast in 2018 and gives small nations and territories a fighting chance to participate in team sport.

“It is not cost prohibitive and we also have some of the best beach volleyball teams in the world.

“The para sports programme has also been enhanced and that’s great to see as well.”

The 2022 Commonwealth Games – the most expensive sports event Britain has hosted since the London 2012 Olympics – will not come cheap at an overall cost of £778 million.

CEO David Grevemberg speaking about the games.