Catmose Sports Centre staff host mini Commonwealth Games to raise money for charity

The 2022 Commonwealth Games is officially here and despite there being no athletes competing from our area, there's still plenty of buzz around Stamford and Rutland.

Oakham's state-of-the-art Catmose Sports Centre is the epicentre of that buzz, with staff embarking on a mini Commonwealth Games of their own.

With the top athletes in our schools also being selected for scholarship programmes at the Centre, there's hopes it will play a big part in developing our stars of the future.

'Anyone that's a top athlete that's recognised by their local schools, they get sent here as well, so it really is hopeful that someone here will become our next Olympian', Centre Manager Jonathan Harrold said.

'The great thing about us is we do everything from 0-100 age, so there's something for everyone. There's badminton, football, netball, cricket, anything that you can possible want, as well as more obscure stuff like trampolining.'

A team effort

Dubbed Move22, staff are raising money for Sport Relief, United By Birmingham 2022 and the Commonwealth Sport Foundation by running 22 miles, rowing 22 miles and cycling 22 miles all in one day.

Mr Harrold says his team's efforts will bring the Games even closer to home and inspire more children to keep taking up sport:

'We have people mentioning what we're doing here to try and get the Games more publicised, but of course, I think it's fantastic when you see people competing and I think we should aspire to be as good as they are.'

EVERYTHING you need to know about the Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games is a sporting event which involves countries that make up the Commonwealth, however, in recent times the Games have been open to any nation that wants to take part.

While there are 54 countries in the Commonwealth, the Birmingham 2022 Games will see 72 countries taking part as a number of dependent territories compete under their own flags. For example, the UK will send four teams, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

The first Commonwealth Games took place in 1930, although it was originally called the British Empire Games.

Like the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games take place every four years. It lasts for eleven days.

Which sports do they compete in at the Commonwealth Games?

The number of events for the Commonwealth Games has been gradually increasing, with Birmingham 2022 having the most ever.

Host nations partly determine which events are added or excluded in each Games and as such no two Games are alike.

In this year’s Games, there are 26 categories of sports with the new addition of Women’s Cricket, which will be held at the world-famous Edgbaston Stadium.

Events include:

• Aquatics - Diving
• Aquatics - Swimming and Para Swimming
• Athletics and Para Athletics
• Badminton
• Basketball
• Beach Volleyball
• Boxing
• Cricket T20
• Cycling
• Gymnastics
• Hockey
• Judo
• Lawn Bowls and Para Lawn Bowls
• Netball
• Para Powerlifting
• Rugby Sevens
• Squash
• Table Tennis and Para Table Tennis.
• Triathlon and Para Triathlon
• Wheelchair Basketball
• Weightlifting
• Wrestling

A full list of events and the timings can be found here.

When is the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony?

The opening ceremony takes place on Thursday 28th July at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham.

Gates will open at 5pm with the pre-show starting at 7:15pm. Duran Duran, who are from Birmingham, will headline the opening ceremony.

The Alexander Stadium underwent a multimillion-pound restoration and will host the opening and closing ceremonies alongside athletics events.

Which venues are hosting the Commonwealth Games 2022?

Apart from the cycling event, which will be held at London’s Lee Valley Velopark, all events will be held in Birmingham and the wider West Midlands.

Coventry, Staffordshire, Wolverhampton and Leamington Spa will all host some events.

The Alexander Stadium will play host to the athletics, the cricket will be at Edgbaston.

London’s Lee Valley Velopark will host the cycling and para cycling events. This will be the only venue outside the Midlands.

Despite not having any sand or beaches, Birmingham will nonetheless host the Beach Volley event at Smithfield in the city centre. Smithfield will also host the Basketball 3x3 and the Wheelchair 3x3 competitions.

Can I still get tickets for the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham?

Tickets are still available for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, however they are selling fast.

Prices start from £8 for under 16s and £15 for adults. Tickets for Aquatics - Swimming, Cycling - Mountain Biking, Cycling Time Trial, Cycling - Road Race, Gymnastics - Artistic and Triathlon & Para Triathlon are now resale tickets only.

You can purchase tickets here.

Who is the Birmingham Commonwealth Games Mascot?

Perry the Bull is the mascot of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. The mascot was designed by 10-year-old Emma Lou, who won a competition held for 5–15-year-olds to design a mascot for the Games.

Are there disabled sports at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games?

There are disabled sports being played at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, unlike the Olympics and Paralympics these aren't held separately.

This year's Games will feature the largest Para-sport program at a Commonwealth Games with 8 Para-sports being contested.

When is the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony?

The closing ceremony will be on Monday 8th August and will be held at the Alexander Stadium.

No more information has been published about the closing ceremony, but it's where the Games will officially pass to the next hosts - Victoria in Australia.

Memorable moments from the Commonwealth Games

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