Dame Laura Kenny hopes that a city steps up to host the 2030 Commonwealth Games, with Glasgow to host a scaled-back 2026 edition.
The Scottish city was named official host after the Australian state of Victoria withdrew due to rising costs, but a number of events may not take place at the Glasgow Games.
Kenny, Great Britain’s most decorated female Olympian, said that unless cities make a big effort to host the event in its entirety, the long-term future of the Commonwealth Games is at risk.
“I really hope that someone steps up and says ‘we’ll take the next one’, because when sporting events disappear, you very rarely see them come back,” Kenny told BBC Breakfast.
“I think we have to think about the history. The Commonwealth Games have been going for so long, it seems such a shame to just leave it and just forget about the history of the sport.
“It brings so many nations together, it’s a multi-sport event and it’s on a huge stage, we have to keep it going.”
The plan is to stage as few as 10 sports in Glasgow, though it is not yet clear which sports will be cut.
Kenny, who won Commonwealth track cycling gold in 2014 and 2022, said there should be focus on prioritising sports that are not included at the Olympics.
“I just hope that they take into consideration non-Olympic sports, because the Commonwealths for the likes of netball are actually the only light that they really get shone on their sport,” Kenny added.
“For me, when they think ‘we’ll pull this one or pull that one’, [it is important] it is done in a way that is fair I guess, because the Olympics is huge and that is where a lot people will watch.
“Ultimately, the Commonwealth Games for a lot of these sports are their Olympics.”
