Victoria [Australia], July 18 : The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) on Tuesday described the Australian state of Victoria's decision to pull out of hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games as "hugely disappointing" and stated that it was considering its options.
Premier of Australia's Victoria state, Daniel Andrews announced on Tuesday that his government has decided to withdraw as host of the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to an enormous rise in the estimated cost of holding the multisport competition.
"We were informed today that the Victorian Government has walked away from their agreement to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games. This is hugely disappointing for the Commonwealth Sport Movement, for athletes around the Commonwealth and the Organising Committee who are well advanced in their planning and preparation," CGF said in a statement.
A statement from the Commonwealth Sports Movement described the choice as "hugely disappointing" for both athletes and authorities. The group said that the $6 billion sum was 50 per cent greater than what the Victorian government had only last month recommended.
"The reasons given are financial. The numbers quoted to us today of $6 billion are 50% more than those advised to the Organising Committee board at its meeting in June. These figures are attributed to price escalation primarily due to the unique regional delivery model that Victoria chose for these Games, and in particular relate to village and venue builds and transport infrastructure," it further read.
Since awarding Victoria the Games, the Government has made decisions to include more sports and an additional regional hub, and changed plans for venues, all of which have added considerable expense, often against the advice of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) and Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA).
In a statement, the CGF said it was given only eight hours' notice of the decision.
"We are disappointed that we were only given eight hours’ notice and that no consideration was given to discussing the situation to jointly find solutions prior to this decision being reached by the Government. Up until this point, the Government had advised that sufficient funding was available to deliver the Victoria 2026 Commonwealth Games," the statement by CGF further read.
"We are taking advice on the options available to us and remain committed to finding a solution for the Games in 2026 that is in the best interest of our athletes and the wider Commonwealth Sport Movement," it concluded.
As per the Sydney Morning Herald, Andrews told the media on Tuesday morning that they might cost more than double what was anticipated.
“What’s become clear is that the cost of hosting these Games in 2026 is not the Aus2.6 billion which was budgeted. It is, in fact, at least $6 billion, and could be as high as Aus7 billion," Andrews was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald.
“I will not take money out of hospitals and schools in order to fund an event that is three times the cost [which] was estimated and budgeted for last year. In terms of where we go from here, the Games will not proceed in Victoria in 2026," he further said.
Australia - who have won 984 gold, 820 silver, and 759 bronze medals so far in CWG - have hosted the Commonwealth Games five times.
The 2026 Games had been scheduled to start form March 17 to 29 in Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and Gippsland.
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