Australia (Common wealth) _ Australia now leads the points table after winning numerous gold, silver, and bronze medals in a variety of events at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, which are being hosted in Trinidad and Tobago.The final of the event, officially known as the VII Commonwealth Youth Games and colloquially as Trinbago 2023, the youth sporting tournament for Commonwealth members, is set to take place tomorrow (10) at the Hasely Crawford Stadium.
The seventh Commonwealth Youth Games were originally slated for August 1–7, 2021, but were moved to August 4–11, 2023, because to the global COVID-19 pandemic and scheduling conflicts with the 2020 Summer Olympics and the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
The seventh Commonwealth Youth Games will be held on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, with 1000+ athletes and para athletes aged 14-18 competing in seven sports overseen by 500+ officials. The Commonwealth Youth Games is a vital springboard for tomorrow’s stars and leaders, helping to the growth of youth sport throughout the Commonwealth. The Games have been hosted every four years since their inception in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2000.
The 2021 Commonwealth Youth Games were awarded to Trinidad and Tobago in June 2019, but the Games were postponed due to the pandemic’s impact on the international athletic calendar. The sports will be held around Trinidad and Tobago, providing a broad picture of the twin island country to Commonwealth nations while also exhibiting a celebration of the country’s activities.
The seventh edition of the Commonwealth Youth Games has over 1,000 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and territories. The games are attended by 71 of the 74 Commonwealth Games Associations. Maldives, Norfolk Island, and Sierra Leone did not compete, as did Gabon and Togo, both new Commonwealth members.
Athletes, beach volleyball, cycling, netball fast 5, rugby sevens, swimming, and triathlon will compete for medals. There will be 93 events spread over seven sports. Since the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games have been canceled.
After the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games were moved to 2021 during the original dates of the Commonwealth Youth Games, the CGF considered the best alternative options and time frames for holding the event in the future, potentially in 2023, to avoid clashing with the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, with Trinidad and Tobago having the first option to host the event.The 7th Commonwealth Youth Games will be hosted in Trinidad and Tobago in 2023, it was announced on July 26, 2022.
The Commonwealth Youth Games in 2023 will be the first to be staged since Queen Elizabeth II’s death and the succession of King Charles III as Head of the Commonwealth and reigning monarch of the Commonwealth Realms since September 8, 2022, they are also the first of their kind to be held in the Caribbean.
On August 4, 2023, the opening ceremony was place at Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain, Trinidad. It was themed like the Trinidad and Tobago carnival. The games were inaugurated by President Christine Kangaloo, who was joined by Commonwealth Games Federation President Louise Martin, Prime Minister Keith Rowley, and his wife. Tobago held a minor ceremony on the same day.
The Commonwealth Games Federation banner will be handed over to representatives of the 2025 Commonwealth Youth Games during the closing ceremony on August 11, 2023. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s Ayomal Akalanka of Ambagamuwa MMV, a bronze medalist at the Asian Youth Athletic Championship 2023, qualified for the 400m Hurdle Boys finals at the 7th Commonwealth Youth Games today.
