 | |
| Predecessor | British Commonwealth Games Federation |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1932; 93 years ago (1932) as British Empire Games Federation |
| Type | Sports federation |
| Headquarters | London, England |
| Membership | 72 member associations[4] |
Official language | English[5] |
Interim President | Donald Rukare[1] |
Vice Presidents | Sandra Osborne[2] Hugh Graham[2] |
Patron | King Charles III[3] |
Vice-Patron | The Duke of Edinburgh[3] |
| Website | www |
| Values:Humanity • Equality • Destiny | |
| Commonwealth Games |
|---|
 |
| Main topics |
| Games |
| Defunct games |
Commonwealth Sport, formerly known as theCommonwealth Games Federation, is the international organisation responsible for the direction and control of theCommonwealth Games andCommonwealth Youth Games, and is the governing body of theCommonwealth Games Associations (CGA). The headquarters of CGF are located inLondon, England.[6]
Due to the success of the first1930 British Empire Games inHamilton, Ontario, Canada, a meeting of representatives from Great Britain, itsdominions,colonies and territories decided that the games, similar to theOlympic Games should be held every four years, and that an authoritative organisation should be formed. Following the1932 Summer Olympics, it was decided to form the"British Empire Games Federation" who would be responsible for the organising of the games. The name of the federation was changed in 1952 to the"British Empire and Commonwealth Games Federation", and again inJamaica in 1966 to the"British Commonwealth Games Federation", until eventually being changed again inChristchurch, New Zealand, in 1974 to the"Commonwealth Games Federation".[7]
The youth version of the Commonwealth Games was launched in August 2000, which is known as the Commonwealth Youth Games. The inaugural edition of the Commonwealth Youth Games was first held inEdinburgh, Scotland.
The following people are in the CGF executive board:[8]
| Designation | Name | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vice-Patron | Prince Edward |  England | |
| Interim President|President | Donald Rukare |  Uganda | |
| Vice-Presidents | Sandra Osborne |  Barbados | |
| Hugh Graham | Cook Islands | ||
| Regional Vice-Presidents | Africa | Botsang Tshenyego |  Botswana |
| Americas | Claire Carver-Dias |  Canada | |
| Asia | Chris Chan |  Singapore | |
| Caribbean | Ephraim Penn |  British Virgin Islands | |
| Europe | Helen Phillips |  Wales | |
| Oceania | Craig Phillips |  Australia | |
| Athlete Representative | Brendan Williams |  Dominica | |
| Audit & Risk Committee Chair | Mary Hardy | England | |
| Medical Advisor | Peter Harcourt | Australia | |
| CEO | Katie Sadleir |  New Zealand | |
The following people are the Honorary members of the CGF executive board:
| Designation | Name | Country |
|---|---|---|
| Honorary Life Presidents | Hon. Michael Fennell,OJ,CD |  Jamaica |
| HRHTunku Imran |  Malaysia | |
| DameLouise Martin,DBE |  Scotland | |
| Honorary Life Vice-Presidents | Alexander B. Chapman, HBM |  Trinidad and Tobago |
| Sharad Rao |  Kenya | |
| Sir Austin Sealy, SCM | Barbados | |
| Dr.Manikavasagam Jegathesan | Malaysia | |
| Gideon Sam |  South Africa | |
| Bruce Robertson | Canada |
The General Assembly is the ultimate governance and authority in the CGF with powers to vote on decisions, including on which cities and Commonwealth Games Association's will host theCommonwealth Games. It consists of 3 or more representatives of aCommonwealth Games Association of each member countries and territories, the Vice-Patron, Life Vice-Presidents and the members of the Executive Board.
Sessions of the General Assembly are chaired by the CGF President, with each CGA and the President having one vote. However the Vice-Patron, Life Vice-Presidents, the Executive Board, representatives of an Organising Committee (OC) of a Commonwealth Games and observers invited by the President may deliberate but do not have voting powers at the General Assembly.[9]
As well as awarding medals to athletes, the Federation may award membership of the Order of Merit (Commonwealth Games Federation) for distinguished services rendered to the Commonwealth Games movement, including the games themselves, to the federation and to aCommonwealth Games Association. The honour is awarded on the recommendation of the Executive Board at the General Assembly.
On recommendation of the Executive Board, at General Assembly the federation may also elect Life Vice-Presidents, providing there are no more than six Life Vice-Presidents at a time as an award for services to the CGF. Former Chairmen and presidents automatically become a Life Vice-President.[10]
ThePresident of the Commonwealth Games Federation is responsible for chairing the Executive Board and the General Assembly. A candidate is elected to the position by the General Assembly the year following theCommonwealth Games. Other duties include inviting theHead of the Commonwealth for the opening and closing declaration of the games and overseeing the preparations for upcoming events.
Previously before theXVI Commonwealth Games in 1998, the President was a ceremonial role, taking on the duties of the Vice-Patron. The latePrince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh served as the president between 1955 and 1990.[11][12] The chairman was elected by the General Assembly as head of the Commonwealth Games Federation.[13]
| No. | Name | Origin | Took office | Left office | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sir James Leigh-Wood,KBE,CB,CMG | England | 1930 | 1938 | |
| 2 | Arthur Porritt, Baron Porritt,Bt.,KCMGCBE | New Zealand | 1950 | 1966 | |
| 3 | Sir Alexander Ross | New Zealand | 1968 | 1982 | |
| 4 | Peter Heatly,CBE,DL | Scotland | 1982 | 1990 | |
| 5 | Arnaldo de Oliveira SalesGBM,OBE,JP |  Hong Kong | 1994 | 1997 | |
| 6 | Michael Fennell,OJ,CD | Jamaica | 1997 | 2010 | |
| 7 | Prince Tunku Imran of Negeri Sembilan |  Malaysia | 2010 | 2014 | |
| 8 | DameLouise Martin,DBE | Scotland | 2014 | 2023 | |
| 9 | Christopher Jenkins | Wales | 2023 | 2025 |
|
| 10 | Donald Rukare | Uganda | 2025 | present |
.svg)
