Canada has sent a star-studded team to the Commonwealth Games, but there are fewer medals on the table for all countries.
The 23rd edition of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow opens Thursday and closes Aug. 2.
About 3,000 athletes from 74 countries and territories will compete in a downsized sport program.
Coverage begins on Thursday, starting with the pre-ceremony show at 2:30 p.m. ET, hosted by CBC Sports’ Andi Petrillo and Paralympic cycling medallist Nathan Clement. CBC Gem, CBCSports.ca and CBC will then have live coverage of the opening ceremony at 3 p.m. ET.
Glasgow rode to the rescue to host the quadrennial summer multi-sport festival when the Australian state of Victoria pulled out in 2023 over ballooning costs.
The 2026 Commonwealth Games features 10 sports: athletics, swimming, boxing, judo, artistic gymnastics, track cycling, netball, weightlifting, bowls and three-on-three basketball.
Six sports include its Para sport counterpart: athletics, swimming, bowls, basketball, track cycling, weightlifting.
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The Commonwealth Games includes Para sport in a country’s medal tally, and Glasgow will host the largest Para sport program in the Games’ history.
Triathlon, beach volleyball, diving, road and mountain biking, wrestling, rhythmic gymnastics and field hockey were among the 20 sports on the 2022 menu in Birmingham, England axed for 2026.
There are 215 medal events in Glasgow, which was also the host city in 2014, compared to 280 in Birmingham.
“It’s meant to be a new kind of Games where it’s still quality, but proving that smaller, smarter and more sustainable can still deliver world-class sport and a lasting legacy,” said Commonwealth Sport Canada president Claire Carver-Dias.
“The world has told us ‘We can’t sustain these giant events any more with these giant price tags. Let’s do something that still has the same quality and impact, but let’s try out a new model.’ We’re dipping our toe into that.
“You could say it’s a pilot; you could say it’s reimagined, and its 10 sports will probably go back up toward what it used to be, but not quite as big as it used to be, for the next iteration.”
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While it often serves a developmental purpose as a young athlete’s first foray into a multi-sport environment, there are decorated veterans on Canada’s Commonwealth team of 149 athletes.
A powerhouse athletics squad includes Olympic champion sprinter Andre De Grasse, hammer throwers Ethan Katzberg and Camryn Rogers and decathlete Damian Warner, as well as world champion thrower Sarah Mitton and race walker Evan Dunfee.
Summer McIntosh isn’t swimming in Glasgow, but Olympic medallists Kylie Masse and Josh Liendo are. Olympic champion weightlifter Maude Charron seeks a Commonwealth gold three-peat.
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“Over the years, many athletes have had so much success at Commonwealth Games, which has led to a lot of success at Olympic and Paralympic Games,” said Canada’s chef de mission and Olympic champion wrestler Erica Wiebe.
“Athletics was one of the sports that really early on said, ‘we want as many quota spots as possible, and this is going to be our big focus in 2026.”‘
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Four-time Olympic gymnast Ellie Black of Halifax sees Glasgow as a building block on her road to a fifth in Los Angeles in 2028.
“My main goal is just to get back out and start competing on some of those apparatus that I haven’t competed since Paris,” said Black, who competed beam and bars, but not floor or vault, at last year’s world championship.
“It’s an opportunity to be in that multi-sport games environment without too much of the pressure that comes maybe with the Olympic Games.
“I think for a lot of those high-level athletes as well, it’s kind of a similar thing.”
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Glasgow serves a similar purpose for Masse of LaSalle, Ont., who is the reigning Commonwealth champion in the 50-metre backstroke.
“This is what I needed this summer, to have a good few races at Commonwealths and then really have a little bit of a reset and focus for the next two years, because leading into L.A., it’s going to be exciting, it’s going to be demanding and I want to be ready, mind, body, soul,” she said.
“The backstroke field is so stacked whether it’s Commonwealths or Pan Pacs or a worlds there are so many incredible backstrokers that I feel really fortunate to be able to race and to learn from, so I know that I’m going to have to be as ready as I can be to race those girls in Glasgow.”
Canada has historically ranked third in the overall medal count behind Australia and England.
“We will continue to aim for top three,” Carver-Dias said.
CBC and CBC Gem will carry live daily broadcasts and will also provide coverage on its streaming service, YouTube and social media channels.
