My prior knowledge of the Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games are the place, where British athletes and citizens, as well as athletes of the countries under the Queen, compete for the Commonwealth Trophy. There are also a lot of no monarch countries who wish to participate. The Commonwealth games are played in teams as well as individually.
The British citizens can enter but they cannot compete for the trophy. The Commonwealth Games are an international competition. They are a chance for people to show off their skill and talent as well as for common people to have a chance to meet athletes. Some athletes in the competition will be able to enter the Olympics If they win at least one medal and show promise in their abilities.
General Knowledge on the Commonwealth Games
The Commonwealth Games were first held in 1930 in Hamilton, Canada. They are held every four years since then except for 1942 and 1946 because it was the time of World War II.
There were six teams competing from the very beginning when the games started and these teams still compete. They come from the following countries: New Zealand, Canada, Wales, Ireland, Australia and England. They are called the Commonwealth of Nations because they are under the rule of the United Kingdom.
Australia is the highest achieving team that has won 12 games. England has won 6 games and Canada, 1.
There have been 14 Games so far and New Zealand has been able to host 3 times. The first hosted game was the IX Game in 1950. Second was the X Game in 1974. Last was the XIX Game in 1990. This year, the games will start on the 23 of July (British time), in Glasgow, Scotland.
There are 53 members of the Commonwealth Nations and 71 teams participating in the Commonwealth Games as some are British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. Almost all the island states compete under their own flag. There are four Home Nations of the United Kingdom. They are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Every one of them is competing under their own flag.
More New Knowledge Gained Through Further Investigation
Because of World War II, the 1942 and 1946, Commonwealth Games were postponed until 1950 where they were brought back to the spotlight and undertook a name change. Over 1000 athletes participated in the 1958 and over thirty teams participated for the first time. The Edmonton event marked a new high as almost 1500 athletes from 46 countries took part. Nigeria was the first country to boycott the Commonwealth Games in 1978 in protest over New Zealand's sporting contacts with South Africa.
Evaluation of My Learning
My Prior Knowledge was very limited because I have never been really interested in the Commonwealth Games. I wrote about what I thought it was and who participated without any concrete evidence and facts. My New Knowledge was based on things that I had found in internet sites like Wikipedia, Blogs and the official Commonwealth Games site. The More New Knowledge is made of a more thoughtful investigation through the information sources listed above. I think that my work is on the level with minimal mistakes. I have taken the best information I could find and put it together to create the paragraphs above.
