Commonwealth Games countdown continues with stadium rebuild on track, programme published and ticket information released

The preparations for the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham have stepped up a gear with organisers revealing that the refurbishment of Alexander Stadium is firmly on target, as well as unveiling the events schedule and releasing ticket information.

Tickets for next year’s showpiece, which takes place from  July 28 – August 8, 2022, will start from just £8 for under-16s and £15 for adults, while there will also be £22 tickets for every session of the Games, including the opening and closing ceremonies and all medal sessions.

Athletics is one of 19 different sports on offer, with the track and field events starting on August 2 and taking up six out of the 11 days of competition.

The athletics will take place at Alexander Stadium, which is currently undergoing a £72 million refurbishment.

We popped down to the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham yesterday to take a look at the Commonwealth venue ?

The good news is, it’s ahead of schedule ? pic.twitter.com/E8w81t6EgZ

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) June 15, 2021

The venue is on budget and will be completed in Spring 2022. Its general capacity will be around 18,000 but extended to approximately 30,000 during the Games.

The roof liner sheets on the new stand have been finished, pre-cast terracing (the concrete support for seating) and the metal decked concrete floors for the new West Stand have been completed. The feature steps for the northern plaza have also been installed.

The project is being overseen by Birmingham City Council and its leader, Councillor Ian Ward, is confident that the Games can create an athletics legacy for the city, rather than a white elephant.

“This stadium here in Birmingham will become the national stadium for athletics and become by far and away the best athletics venue in the whole of the country. Over 30,000 people will be packed in here for the Commonwealth Games and I expect to hear the roar of the crowd as the athletes come round the final bend,” Ward tells AW.

“I expect to see major national and international events long into the future. We’re talking to a number of organisations about future use of the stadium for 365 days of the year and Birmingham University will be the anchor tenants to ensure that it does not become a white elephant and can become an asset to the city long into the future.”

This will be the third time that Great Britain has hosted a Commonwealth Games this century after Manchester in 2002 and Glasgow in 2014.

Hannah England, 1500m world championship silver medallist and three-time UK champion, competed in Glasgow and has strong links to Birmingham, given she studied at university in the city.

“We’ve been so lucky to have so many home athletics competitions in Britain and I can see Birmingham just building on that. We’re so lucky with that tradition and we’ve learnt from those events which means we can put on an even better championships,” she says.

“I think the Alexander Stadium has a strong athletics tradition but I think everyone knew it needed updating and it’s going to be similar to the ones you get in Europe where the crowds are much closer around the bends. That atmosphere is what we’re going to get from Birmingham 2022 and I think events would be amazing alongside the community element of having English Schools and of course Birchfield Harriers are based here.

“I wish this was here five years ago so I could compete but I’m based at the University of Birmingham and I’m so keen to see their journeys.”

The start of the Commonwealth Games takes place just four days after the end of the World Championships in Oregon on July 24, in what is set to be a blockbuster six weeks of athletics action given that the European Championships in Munich then start on August 16.

Here is a timescale (June 2020-April 2021) of the Alexander Stadium during its redevelopment, ahead of @birminghamcg22.

? Birmingham City Council pic.twitter.com/pWzQJho6yC

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) June 15, 2021

Matt Kidson, Director of Sport for Birmingham 2022, is excited by the prospect of welcoming medallists to Birmingham so soon after Oregon.

“My first thought walking into the stadium is it’s going to be a world-class venue for the Commonwealth Games six days of athletics coming back from the world champs in the US. The atmosphere that the stadium will generate will be fantastic. We’ll have temporary stands in as well to take the capacity up to 30,000 and I think we’ll get a similar noise to what we had at London 2012,” he tells AW.

“I think this is going to be a very special place for athletics to take place. We’ve got the home of UK Athletics here in Birmingham and there’s an affinity for the sport in the West Midlands. The athletes know this place and they are going to feel at home.”

To view the event schedule for the Games and find out how to set up your ticketing account, click here.

You can now register for the ticket ballot here, with residents from the West Midlands able to apply in July. The main ticket ballot starts in September.