AW promotion: Scottish miler Josh Kerr and Welsh middle-distance runner Melissa Courtney-Bryant are among the medal hopes in Birmingham

The 2022 Commonwealth Games are just a matter of months away, with the event set to start on July 28, and running through to August 8. This will be the third time England has hosted the Games, and it will be the first time Birmingham will host them, after London hosted in 1934 and Manchester in 2002.

Birmingham 2022 will be a historic Games, due to the fact that they will have the largest ever female and para sport programme in the Games’ history, and for the first time ever, there will be more medals available for women than men at a major multi-sport event.

All of the home nations will believe they have genuine medal hopes at this year’s games, and if readers want to place a bet on any of the events held at the games, they can do so on any number of betting sites like these found here. In this article, we look ahead to the games, and at the big name athletes expected to compete, as well as some of the big medal hopefuls for the home nation teams.

Adam Peaty MBE – Men’s swimming (England)

When it comes to success, there is no doubting Adam Peaty’s credentials. He is one of Britain’s greatest and most decorated sportsmen in history, and the 2022 Commonwealth Games gives him a first opportunity to shine in front of a home crowd. He was born in Uttoxeter, Staffordshire, which is just down the road from Birmingham.

The three-time Olympic champion, eight-time world champion, sixteen-time European champion and three-time Commonwealth champion recently told Swimming.org: “This is my home-coming from the Olympics and the last five years. I’m looking forward to coming to Birmingham and just enjoying the home crowd. I’m literally like 40 minutes away from the arena – I live so close to it it’s going to be the only chance in my life when I can actually call it a true home games.

“So yeah, it’s going to be incredible. It’s always a privilege to represent England – but I also hate losing my Welsh and Scottish counterparts as well.”

He is widely expected to take home gold for England in 2022, and it will be fantastic to see the all-time great in action.

Women’s T20 Cricket (England)

As we mentioned earlier, the 2022 Commonwealth Games will be a landmark event due to the largest ever female programme in the games history. Part of that programme will be women’s T20 cricket making its Commonwealth Games debut. The team are currently out in New Zealand competing in the 50-over World Cup, and after starting dismally with three losses, have turned their fortunes around by winning every game since, and look set for a semi-final berth. In their Commonwealth Games group they will face New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka, which they will be expected to qualify from. However, were they to do that, they will likely have to beat India and Australia in the semi final and final to take home the gold.

The Australia team is one of the most dominant teams in world sport, so it will be no easy feat to win gold for England, but given the fact they will have home support, they will fancy their chances. Captain Katherine Brunt has been a vital member of the team for so long, and the 36-year-old all rounder told the Barnsley Chronicle earlier this year that this will probably be her last competition before retirement.

She said: “The Commonwealth Games is my send-off in my head, and it has been for a while. That’s what I have been working towards.” It’s been an incredible career for Brunt, and nothing would be better for England fans than to see her go out on a high. 

Melissa Courtney-Bryant – women’s 1500 metres/5000 metres (Wales)

Melissa Courtney-Bryant put in an incredible performance four years ago on the Gold Coast when she came home with a bronze medal in the 1500 metres. She performed at her best when it mattered most, putting in a personal best time of 4:03.44, beaten only by Caster Semenya and Beatrice Chepkoech.

The women’s 1500 metres is an incredibly tough event to win a medal in, with the standard being so high. But Courtney-Bryant will have hopes that she can medal again in Birmingham. She will be particularly hungry to perform, given the fact she missed out on last year’s Olympic trials due to a ligament injury in her heel. 

Rhys McClenaghan – men’s Pommel Horse (Northern Ireland)

Rhys McClenaghan was the only Northern Irish person to win a gold medal in the 2018 Games, when he shocked England’s Max Whitlock by beating him in the men’s Pommel Horse. He had a disappointing Olympic Games, finishing seventh in the pommel horse final and will be aiming to bounce back in Birmingham when he represents Northern Ireland. The 22 year-old from County Down won Northern Ireland’s first ever medal for an artistic gymnast at the Commonwealth Games and in 2018 was Ireland’s first ever European Champion. 

Josh Kerr – men’s 1500 Metres (Scotland)

Edinburgh-born Josh Kerr represents one of Scotland’s best chances for a medal in 2022. His fantastic bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics when he ran a personal best of 3:29.05 to finish behind Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot, securing Britain’s first men’s 1500m Olympic medal for 33 years.

In a 2021 interview with Scottish Athletics, Kerr said: “I love major championship running. I would love to run a Commonwealth Games. Those are the kinds of things when growing up, and competing in Scottish age group champs or whatever, that you are looking towards and wanting to be involved in. It would be a really cool thing to do to wear a Scotland vest. I’ve not been home for a very long time so Birmingham 2022 is a big goal for next summer.”