MELBOURNE, July 18 (Reuters) - Australia's state of Victoria will not host the 2026 Commonwealth Games due to projected cost overruns, placing the future of the quadrennial multi-sport event in doubt.
"Frankly A$6-A$7 billion for a 12-day sporting event, we're not doing that," Andrews said at a media conference.
Andrews said Victoria had already informed the global Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) but the cost of breaking the 2026 contract had yet to be decided.
The CGF did not provide immediate comment but local body Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) said the pull-out was "beyond disappointing".
The Australian Olympic Committee (AOC), which had spoken of the 2026 Games as a "runway" for hosting the 2032 Brisbane Olympics, said it was "an enormous disappointment" for the athletes.
Persons:
Victoria Premier Dan Andrews, we're, Andrews, Victoria, Craig Phillips, John Coates, Chris Minns, CGF, Ian Ransom, Christian Schmollinger, Stephen Coates, Peter Rutherford
Organizations:
MELBOURNE, Victoria Premier, Commonwealth Games Federation, Commonwealth Games Australia, First Nations Australians, Birmingham, Australia, Games, Australian Olympic, New Zealand Olympic, Olympic, Sydney, South, Thomson
Locations:
Victoria, Australia, Britain, South Africa, Coast, Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Gippsland, New South Wales, NSW, South Australia, Western Australia, Hamilton