1978 Commonwealth Games

XI Commonwealth Games
Host cityEdmonton, Canada
Nations47
Athletes1,475
Events128 events in 11 sports
Opening3 August 1978
Closing12 August 1978
Opened byElizabeth II
Athlete's OathBeverly Boys
Queen's Baton Final RunnerDiane Jones Konihowski
Main venueCommonwealth Stadium

The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, from 3 to 12 August, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics was held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with apartheid-era South Africa, as well as by Uganda, in protest at alleged Canadian hostility towards the government of Idi Amin.[1] The Bid Election was held at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich.

This was the first Commonwealth Games where a computerized system was used to handle ticket sales. This was the first Commonwealth Games to be named under the current title as Commonwealth Games, having dropped British. The Games were opened by Queen Elizabeth II for the first time since becoming Queen in 1952.

Host selection

1978 Commonwealth Games bidding results
City Round 1
Edmonton 36
Leeds 10

Venues

The main stadium was the Commonwealth Stadium, constructed specifically for the Games at the cost of $42 million.[2][3]

The athletes' village was located at the University of Alberta and had accommodation for 2,000 athletes (2 per room) in the Lister Hall Residential Complex. The dining hall could seat up to 1,000 and was open 24 hours a day. A shuttle bus ran from the University campus to the main stadium five miles away.[4]

Participating teams

46 teams were represented at the 1978 Games.
(Teams competing for the first time are shown in bold).

Participating Commonwealth countries and territories

Medal table

.

The host nation topped the medal table.[9]

  *   Host nation (Canada)

RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1 Canada*453133109
2 England27273387
3 Australia24332784
4 Kenya76518
5 New Zealand56920
6 India54615
7 Scotland36514
8 Jamaica2237
9 Wales2158
10 Northern Ireland2125
11 Hong Kong2002
12 Malaysia1214
13 Ghana1113
 Guyana1113
15 Tanzania1102
16 Trinidad and Tobago0224
 Zambia0224
18 Bahamas0101
 Papua New Guinea0101
20 Western Samoa0033
21 Isle of Man0011
Totals (21 entries)128128139395

Sports

References

  1. ^ Donald Macintosh; Michael Hawes; Donna Ruth Greenhorn; David Ross Black (5 April 1994). Sport and Canadian Diplomacy. McGill-Queen's Press – MQUP. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-7735-1161-3.
  2. ^ a b c "Commonwealth Games of 1978". EBSCO. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
  3. ^ "History of Commonwealth Stadium". City of Edmonton. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
  4. ^ "Oil capital of Canada". Ireland's Saturday Night. 4 March 1978. p. 5. Retrieved 30 January 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Games Calendar". Newcastle Journal. 3 August 1978. p. 14. Retrieved 8 February 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ^ "Billy Chases Gold in Canada". Belfast Telegraph. 28 July 1978. p. 23. Retrieved 5 February 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ^ "Case Study:Remediation of Lead Impacted Soils, Former Stratcona Shooting Range" (PDF). ESAA. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
  8. ^ "Edmonton's Ivor Dent sports park officially opens". Edmonton Sun. 27 June 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  9. ^ "Medal Standings Edmonton 1978". Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
Preceded by
Christchurch 		Commonwealth Games
Edmonton
XI Commonwealth Games 		Succeeded by
Brisbane
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