australia commonwealth games cancellation spurs questions for alberta 2030 bid
officials said a decision on whether to pursue the 2030 commonwealth games in alberta will depend on economic feasibility
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as the australian state of victoria pulls the plug on hosting the 2026 commonwealth games, the team behind a potential bid to bring the 2030 edition of the event to alberta says they won’t move forward with hosting if they can’t ensure a cost-efficient games.
in a bombshell announcement tuesday, victoria premier dan andrews announced the cancellation of the 2026 commonwealth games, saying costs had ballooned to an estimated $7 billion for the 12-day competition, up from an initial $2.6-billion estimate. it’s unclear whether those games will be held at all, with no replacement host immediately identified.
the news comes as alberta considers hosting the multi-sport summer games in 2030, eyeing a joint bid between calgary, edmonton and the tsuut’ina nation.
ongoing work to explore the feasibility of that bid continues, officials said tuesday; in march, the alberta government put $2 million into the bid exploration, with calgary and edmonton each pitching in $1 million.
officials said while alberta has a long history of delivering successful international events showcasing the province’s nature and people, a decision on whether to pursue the 2030 commonwealth games will depend on the economics.
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“it is important that the 2030 commonwealth games build a cost-efficient, inclusive and sustainable legacy while acting as an economic catalyst for alberta communities for many years to come,” the alberta 2030 commonwealth games bid committee said in a statement to postmedia.
“if we do not feel that can be achieved, then we will not submit a bid.”
alberta could be only bid for 2030 games
as it stands, canada is the only country publicly exploring a bid for the 2030 commonwealth games, meaning alberta is very likely to be awarded the event if it decides to pursue it.
alberta sports and tourism minister joseph schow said tuesday that victoria’s withdrawal has no immediate implications for alberta’s bidding process.
he said he was disappointed to hear about the australia cancellation, but that he remains committed to making the best decision on a games for the province.
“if we’re going to host international games, we want to make sure it’s right for the province, it’s right for the taxpayers,” schow said. “we’re going to get all the relevant information and make a decision based on that.”
schow declined to speculate about an acceptable price tag for an alberta commonwealth games, but said the increased cost in australia was concerning.
file photo: fireworks explode over the melbourne cricket ground during the closing ceremony for the melbourne 2006 commonwealth games on march 26, 2006 in melbourne, australia.
mark nolan
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getty images
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calgary coun. sonya sharp said it’s too early to know the full implications of victoria’s decision not to host the games, but that the development should be part of discussions in alberta.
“i think there’s obviously some lessons to be learned,” sharp said.
victoria’s withdrawal coupled with a general lack of interest among commonwealth nations in bidding for the 2030 event should be a warning sign for alberta, argued concordia university economist moshe lander.
he said the costs of hosting large-scale international sporting events have soared, without a strong economic case for cities to host.
“as weird as it sounds, you don’t want to win this competition by default, because it’s indicative that of all of the possible cities in all of the possible countries around the world, not one of them wanted it,” lander said.
“these are costly games now. these are not your parents’ or your grandparents’ commonwealth games, which edmonton hosted decades ago (in 1978). these are big-time events now that cost billions of dollars and come with huge unforeseen costs in the way of things like security that never would have been imagined a generation ago.”
referendum remains a possibility for the games
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albertans may be asked to weigh in directly on whether the province should host the 2030 games.
among schow’s directives in his new cabinet post is to implement mandatory referendums for future plans to bring international games to alberta.
speaking to postmedia on monday, he wouldn’t rule out a referendum on the 2030 commonwealth bid; any vote would have to happen quickly, however, with a decision on whether to move forward with the bid expected next month and the games to be awarded in november.
sharp said she’d support a referendum.
“these games do cost a lot of money, and it’s really important for the citizens in alberta to understand what that means, what the return on investment would mean for the province,” she said.
coun. sonya sharp at council chamber at city hall on tuesday, november 8, 2022.
azin ghaffari
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postmedia
lander criticized the idea of a referendum for any large-scale international event, saying it represents politicians downloading their responsibilities onto citizens.
“politicians are elected to make these decisions, and in theory they have an army of advisers and consultants that can properly analyze the benefits and costs of hosting the games,” he said. “to ask taxpayers what they think is almost a dereliction of duty.”
in 2018, a plebiscite asked calgarians whether they’d support the city hosting the 2026 winter olympics. fifty-six per cent of voters rejected that idea, leading council to end the bid.
