Catch 2022: Chandigarh medals not to be added to Birmingham CWG tally

Vinayak Padmadeo

Tribune News Service

new delhi, February 29

The medals won during the Commonwealth Shooting and Archery Championships in Chandigarh in early 2022 will not be added to the medal table of the Commonwealth Games, to be held in Birmingham later that year.

Following the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) Board’s announcement that Chandigarh would host archery and shooting competitions in January 2022, news reports suggested that the medals won in these events would be added to the main tally at the end of the Commonwealth Games, scheduled to end on August 7, 2022.

However, there will be two separate medals tallies — one for the Chandigarh competitions and one for the Birmingham CWG. And a week after the completion of CWG, there will be another aggregate table, for Commonwealth Sport for 2022.

No addition

A source that closely followed the agreement that came about after months of deliberations between CGF, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) told The Tribune that the medals won in Chandigarh will not be added to the main tally of the Birmingham Games.

“There will be no linkage to the Birmingham 2022,” said this source. When this reporter specifically commented that it seemed that the Chandigarh medals won’t be added to the Birmingham Games tally, the source said: “You are correct”.

‘No direct link’

CGF president Dame Louise Martin too has issued a clarification on the issue: “For accuracy, there will be no direct link between Birmingham 2022 and Chandigarh 2022 as this is not a co-hosting arrangement. The events will be recognised as two separately organised and funded Commonwealth Sport championships. There will be two individual medal tables, one for Chandigarh 2022 and one for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Chandigarh 2022 will present Commonwealth Archery and Shooting Championships medals and produce a medal table at the end of the event.”

“One week following the Closing Ceremony of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, the CGF shall issue a medal table that includes results from the Chandigarh 2022 Commonwealth Archery and Shooting Championships, as a further and final legitimate ranking of competing nations and territories from the respective competition,” she added.

She added that the Host City Contract for Birmingham 2022 provides commercial protections and “ensures that Chandigarh 2022 cannot imply an association with the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games”.

IOA chief Narinder Batra declined to comment, saying: “If you want to unnecessarily raise confusion then go ahead. I have nothing to say in this issue.”

Separate competitions

NRAI president Raninder Singh was unavailable for comment. However, in a series of tweets earlier in the day, Singh insisted that medals won in Chandigarh will be added to the 2022 Games. His statement: “Gentlemen please don’t rush to arriving at conclusions that are not correct. Please take your time to digest and read the text carefully, of course they are two separate competitions hence two separate licences each protecting the commercial autonomy of the other, there are also separate medal tallies. Then, the CGF a maximum of 7 days after the closing ceremony at Birmingham, shall aggregate the two tables by joining them together, and issue a final medal tally that shall represent the legitimate ranking for each nation and territory that competed.”