Australian State Strikes $243 Million Agreement After Withdrawal from 2026 Commonwealth Games Hosting

After its withdrawal as the 2026 event host due to anticipated cost overruns, Victoria state in Australia will pay A$380 million ($243 million) to the Commonwealth Games organizers, Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews announced on Saturday.

 According to Andrews, costs for the quadrennial multi-sport event, which was to be held in four regional hubs, might have risen to more than A$7 billion from a budgeted A$2.6 billion, thus Victoria withdrew as the host in July.

 Due to the decision, there is now a chance that the Games won’t be held for the first time since they were postponed owing to the Second World War.

 According to the parties, the Victorian government has agreed to give the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), Commonwealth Games Federation Partnerships (CGFP), and Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) A$380 million (US$243 million).

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Commonwealth Games Cancelled Due to Escalating Costs

Daniel Andrews, the state’s premier, declared in July that the Games would no longer take place because of the escalating expenditures.

 The tournament generally draws more than 4,000 athletes from the 54 Commonwealth countries, almost all of whom were once British Empire colonies.

 Twenty sports and 26 disciplines would be featured in the 2026 edition, which was scheduled to take place in five regional hubs including Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Gippsland, and Shepparton. Each hub would have its own athletes’ village.

 According to a joint statement released on Saturday, after Victoria decided to resign as hosts, all parties engaged in “confidential good faith negotiations” under the supervision of Former Chief Justice of the Western Australian Supreme Court Wayne Martin and New Zealand Judge Kit Toogood

 “All parties engaged respectfully and made appropriate concessions to reach an agreement,” the statement continued.

 The payment comes after the long-running event suffered another setback when Canada’s Alberta province withdrew its backing for a bid for the 2030 Games earlier this month.

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Source: ChannelNewsAsia