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Diving, rugby and cricket are among the sports that will not feature in the 2026 Commonwealth Games, for which Glasgow has been officially confirmed as host.
The scaled-down Games will take place from July 23 to August 2, the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) announced on Tuesday.
Glasgow, which hosted the event in 2014, stepped in to stage the event after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year.
The Games will feature a 10-sport programme across four venues within an eight-mile corridor, with more than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
Athletics and swimming are included as compulsory sports for 2026, while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls and 3×3 basketball.
There will also be integrated para events in six of those sports – athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, bowls and basketball.
Among the sports missing out compared to the 2022 Games in Birmingham are triathlon, diving, hockey, T20 cricket, squash, badminton and rugby sevens.
Commonwealth Games Scotland chair Ian Reid said it was not easy to decide which sports to include.
“I think everybody recognises that these events need to be more affordable, lighter and we would have loved to have all of our sports and all of our athletes competing but unfortunately it’s just not deliverable or affordable for this time frame,” Reid said.
However, he thinks the sport programme will start to vary and may increase in size depending on venues in future cities, so there is a chance more sports may again be included.
Around 3,000 athletes are expected to compete from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories representing a combined total of 2.5 billion people – a third of the world’s entire population.
Players from Australia, New Zealand and Fiji pose with their medals following the women’s rugby sevens finals during the 2022 Commonwealth Games
The four venues confirmed to host events are Scotstoun Stadium, Tollcross International Swimming Centre, Emirates Arena – including the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome – and the Scottish Event Campus.
It is estimated the Glasgow 2026 Games will deliver more than £100m of inward investment into the city.
Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotel accommodation.
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said: “As well as an action-packed, inclusive sports programme that will inspire and excite audiences across the globe – Glasgow 2026 will also be a cultural celebration.
“I would like to thank Commonwealth Games Scotland for their hard work and dedication to produce a viable proposal for Glasgow 2026 – and to the Commonwealth Games Federation and Commonwealth Games Australia for their assistance in helping to secure the Games.”
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