| Opening Ceremony … 15 Mar 2006 | Host City … Melbourne, Australia | Closing Ceremony … 26 Mar 2006 |
| Participants … 4,500 athletes (approx), 71 Commonwealth Nations |
| 2006 Games 2006 Medals … |  | Gold |  | Silver |  | Bronze | Games Main Page |
The Commonwealth Games have been held in Australia four times: It has been referred to as “the friendly games” because the athletes come from all over the world and share a moment of friendship before competing
OFFICIAL OPENING BY Queen Elizabeth II. There were 247 events in 16 sports. The Slogan was United By The Moment.
The 2006 Commonwealth Games was the largest sporting event ever staged in Melbourne. If you include the everyone competing and the number of events held, it even eclipsed the 1956 Summer Olympics.
The games mascot for 2006 was Karak, a Red-Tailed Black Cockatoo. This friendly, loud, cheeky and energetic behaviour characterised this wonderful Australian bird which is on the threatened species list. Karak’s name came from its distinctive birdcall.
The opening and closing ceremonies was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). The 1956 Olympic Games used the same venue.
The 2006 Games had 16 sports: 12 individual and 4 team sports. The athletics, swimming, table tennis and weightlifting sports include fully integrated events for elite athletes with a disability (EAD). These events are included in the official medal tally.
The Queen’s Baton Relay is a tradition of the Commonwealth Games since 1958. The 2006 Relay was the word’s longest, most inclusive relay having visited all 71 Commonwealth nations. The relay covered over 189,000 kilometres in one year and one day starting from Buckingham Palace in England to the Opening Ceremony of the current Games.
Top 15 Countries By Total Medals
Host country listed in bold, Australia in green.
| Country | | | | Total | |
| 1 | Australia | 84 | 69 | 68 | 221 |
| 2 | England | 36 | 40 | 34 | 110 |
| 3 | Canada | 26 | 29 | 31 | 86 |
| 4 | India | 22 | 17 | 11 | 50 |
| 5 | South Africa | 12 | 13 | 13 | 38 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 6 | 12 | 13 | 31 |
| 7 | Scotland | 11 | 7 | 11 | 29 |
| 8 | Malaysia | 7 | 12 | 10 | 29 |
| Country | | | | Total | |
| 9 | Jamaica | 10 | 4 | 8 | 22 |
| 10 | Wales | 3 | 5 | 11 | 19 |
| 11 | Singapore | 5 | 6 | 7 | 18 |
| 12 | Kenya | 6 | 5 | 7 | 18 |
| 13 | Nigeria | 4 | 6 | 7 | 17 |
| 14 | Cyprus | 3 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| 15 | Pakistan | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
Participating Teams
Countries attending the games were: Anguilla, Antigua & Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Brunei Darussalam, Cameroon, Canada, Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, Cyprus, Dominica, England, Falkland Islands, Fiji, The Gambia, Ghana, Gibraltar, Grenada, Guernsey, Guyana, India, Isle of Man, Jamaica, Jersey, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Montserrat, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, New Zealand, Nigeria, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Ireland, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Scotland, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Republic of South Africa, Sri Lanka, St Helena, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent & The Grenadines, Swaziland, Tanzania, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Wales, Zambia.
