Commonwealth Games: Cricket stumped (24 April 1999)
THE Commonwealth Games Federation yesterday approved 14 individual and three team sports for the 2002 Games in Manchester, but the list did not include cricket, despite its success in Kuala Lumpur last year
24-Apr-1999
24 April 1999
Commonwealth Games: Cricket stumped
By Tom Knight
THE Commonwealth Games Federation yesterday approved 14 individual
and three team sports for the 2002 Games in Manchester, but the list
did not include cricket, despite its success in Kuala Lumpur last
year.
Jane Price, speaking for the Manchester Games, confirmed discussions
with cricket and snooker were taking place and both sports could yet
be in the programme.
She said: "Manchester will have three more individual sports than
Kuala Lumpur and table tennis and triathlon are additions. The team
sports will be rugby, men's and women's hockey and netball, but
cricket was never included in our original proposal."
She said the Manchester Games would be the biggest ever, involving
5,250 athletes, coaches and officials. For the first time, the main
programme would include eight events for disabled athletes.
Despite giving assurances over the staging of the Games, the
Manchester organisers remained silent over negotiations on
sponsorship deals crucial to the funding of the £90 million event.
The Games committee said they were close to finalising negotiations
with Manchester City over their leasing of the 44,000-seat stadium
now under construction. The only sponsorship announced for the event
so far is a £2 million deal with Manchester Airport.
Mike Fennell, the Commonwealth Games Federation chairman, said: "It
is clear that the structure of organisation and management
arrangements are well in place."
Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)