The Victorian government has announced the 2026 Commonwealth Games will not go ahead in the state due to financial issues – and the bombshell call is already drawing backlash.
The Games were due to be hosted in regional Victoria, but premier Dan Andrews has abandoned those plans.
He made the announcement to media on Tuesday morning.
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Andrews said the original budget to host the Games in five regional cities was $2.6 billion, but the government came to the realisation it would need to spend as much as $7b to host the 12-day event.
"I will not take money out of hospitals and schools to fund an event that is three times the cost what was estimated and budgeted for last year," he said.
"I have made a lot of difficult calls, a lot of very difficult decisions in this job. This is not one of them.
"Frankly, six to $7 billion for a 12-day sporting event, we are not doing that. That does not represent value for money."
The decision has not been received well by Australian athletes.
Former tennis player turned Liberal MP Sam Groth fumed at the Andrews government via Twitter.
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Former champion swimmer James Magnussen was devastated to hear the news.
"It's really disappointing," he told SEN radio.
"The Commonwealth Games holds a special place in Australian athletes' hearts. We don't get a grand final every year like you do in the football codes. We train year-round to perform often once per year.
"You've got a World Champs year, you've got a Comm Games year, and you've got an Olympics year. Take that out of the cycle and we're racing once every two years.
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"As an athlete who competed at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, and for all those fans who went along… that was a massive event and was very well received.
"It still holds a lot of importance in the sporting landscape here in Australia. That's essentially the biggest recruitment tool for a sport like swimming. People are watching NRL and AFL every weekend.
"Something like the Commonwealth Games on home soil just ignites that dream for a young athlete. It has a huge impact on those sports."
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