GOLD COAST, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 15: Helen Housby of England (R) shoots under pressure during the Netball Gold Medal Match on day 11 of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games at Coomera Indoor Sports Centre on April 15, 2018 on the Gold Coast, Australia. (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)
World Netball (WN) and the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) have announced the first six Commonwealth Games Associations (CGAs) that will participate in the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Australia, New Zealand, England, Jamaica, South Africa, and Malawi were officially invited by the CGF at the start of October 2021 with all six teams accepting the invitation.
A total of 12 teams will compete at the games. Host nation England and the top 5 CGAs in the world rankings qualified for the event as per their ranking on 28 July 2021, one year prior to the start of the Commonwealth Games.
The teams ranked 7-12 according to the world rankings on 31 January 2022 will be invited in February 2022 to participate at the Games.
World Netball President, Liz Nicholl CBE, commented: “Congratulations to the top six teams in the World Netball world rankings on securing their place at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“World Netball will continue to work closely with the CGF and the CGAs on the announcement of the remaining six teams.
“I look forward to seeing all 12 teams compete on this world stage in Birmingham next year and watching the athletes embrace this opportunity to compete at this important multi-sport event.
“The Commonwealth Games provides an amazing platform for our athletes to inspire a whole new generation of netballers, as they have done in every Games since 1998.”
Commonwealth Games Federation President, Dame Louise Martin, said: “I would like to congratulate the six teams that have secured their spot at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. We are already shaping up for an exciting competition.
“Netball was one of the highlights of Gold Coast 2018. That unforgettable final between Australia and England will always be remembered as one of the iconic moments in Commonwealth Games history.
“There is no doubt that we can expect more excitement and entertainment at Birmingham 2022, in front of passionate fans, and we look forward to working closely with World Netball to confirm the six remaining spots for this prestigious event.”
Following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, on the international netball event calendar the CGF and WN agreed in March 2021 to extend the qualification date for netball at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games to 31 January 2022. This has provided additional time for fixtures to be played before the 2022 domestic netball season begins.
During the remainder of the qualification period, many Commonwealth countries will be involved in rankings matches that could secure their qualification for the Commonwealth Games.
Director of Sport for Birmingham 2022, Matt Kidson, encouraged the Netball Family to prepare for the general ticket sale for the event.
He said: “It’s fantastic news that the first six qualifiers for the netball competition have been confirmed and we are very much looking forward to welcoming these teams to Birmingham next summer.
“The netball competition will be held at the NEC Arena, which is an impressive venue and through our recent ticket ballots we have already seen that this sport will once again attract thousands of passionate fans.
“Our tickets will go on general sale very soon and we will shortly be announcing the match schedule for netball, so I’d urge netball fans to sign up for updates now on the Birmingham 2022 website, so that they don’t miss out on what is set to be yet another incredible Commonwealth Games netball competition.”
To find out more about netball at Birmingham 2022, click here.
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