Canadian province Alberta cancels bid for 2030 Commonwealth Games

The government of Alberta has pulled its support for a bid to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games due to rising costs.

A joint bid was being considered by the Canadian province, centred around the cities of Edmonton and Calgary. Tourism Minister Joseph Schow said the bill was estimated at C$2.6bn (£1.5bn) – a burden “too high for the province to bear”.

Last month Australia pulled out of hosting the 2026 Games in Victoria due to budget blowouts.

The initial plan was to host the games over 11 days in August 2030 with competitions and events spread between Calgary and Edmonton, as well as the Tsuut’ina Nation and Enoch Cree Nation. In a statement minister Schow said: “The corporate sponsorship model and limited broadcast revenues for the Commonwealth Games would have put 93% of those costs and risks on taxpayers. “We committed to remain transparent with Albertans about the costs of hosting international sporting events and clearly demonstrating a return on our investment for the people and communities in Alberta. That is why we have made the decision not to continue pursuing the bid for the 2030 Commonwealth Games.”

Alberta’s provincial government said it had committed up to C$2m to explore the feasibility of hosting the Games – and the city of Edmonton another C$1m, according to Reuters. Commonwealth Sport Canada previously said it expected to complete the feasibility study in August when a decision would be made on whether to submit a formal bid.

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek’s office told Canada’s national public broadcaster CBC the bid was finished without support from the province. “The provincial government’s decision to withdraw from Alberta’s 2030 Commonwealth Games bid process effectively terminates the bid and the City of Calgary’s participation,” the statement said.

(BBC)