The multinational and multi-sport event of Commonwealth Games was held in 1930 in Hamilton, Canada for the first time. It was initially named as British Empire Games (1930-1950), British Empire and Commonwealth Games (1954-1966) and British Commonwealth (1970-1974).
The 1950 Commonwealth Games were hosted by Auckland, Newzealand from February 4- 11, 1950.Apart from the Olympic sports, the sports like lawn bowls, rugby sevens and netball which are played mostly in Commonwealth countries, are included in Commonwealth Games.
Opening Ceremony
The opening ceremony of Commonwealth Games 1950 was held at Eden Park in presence of around 40,000 spectators.
The countries participated in 1950 Commonwealth Games were
- Australia
- Canada
- Ceylon
- England
- Fiji
- Malaya
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
- Rhodesia
- Scotland
- South Africa
- Wales
Debut
Malaysia and Nigeria made their first appearance in Commonwealth Games 1950.
Events
The events included in 1950 British Empire Games were Athletics, Boxing, Cycling, Fencing, Lawn Bowls, Rowing, Swimming and Diving, Weightlifting and Wrestling.
Results
Australia, with 80 medals (34 Gold, 27 Silver and 19 Bronze), topped the list while New Zealand came 2nd with 54 medals and England stood 3rd with 48 medals.
Some of the star performers of Commonwealth Games 1950 were
- Marjorie Jackson (AUS), Athletics
- Hugh Riley (SCO), Boxing
- Jim Pirret (NZL), Bowling
- Russell Mockridge (AUS), Cycling
- Peter Salmon (CAN), Swimming
- Mervyn Wood (AUS), Rowing
- Tho Fook Hung (MAL), Weightlifting
- Bert Harris (AUS), Wrestling
