More than 90 delegates representing 58 Commonwealth nations and territories have visited the West Midlands as part of their preparations for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The delegates, who represent nations and territories from all six regions of the Commonwealth, were able to tour venues, visit villages and meet with key members of staff from Birmingham 2022 and the Commonwealth Games Federation.

They discussed important topics such as sport, village accommodation, accreditation, ceremonies and transport.

Included in the four-day visit were tours of the brand-new Sandwell Aquatics Centre which will host swimming, Para swimming and diving at the Games, and the newly transformed Alexander Stadium, which will host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, as well as the athletics and Para athletics events.

The delegates were also taken to three campus villages for the Games at the University of Warwick, the NEC and the University of Birmingham. The latter two sites are also locations for competition venues and training venues, so are key hubs for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The representatives from the international teams were also given a warm welcome at official events hosted by Birmingham City Council, University of Birmingham, Commonwealth Games England and the Commonwealth Games Federation. Scott Stevenson, Director of Sport for Commonwealth Games Canada, said: 

“I’m very impressed with the facilities for the Games. The Sandwell Aquatics Centre will serve the teams really well and it is an exciting venue.

“It has everything we need for warm-up facilities for both swimming and diving and the dry dive facilities are excellent – that’s not something that everyone thinks of.”