Putting Cities on the Map: Vancouver's 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games in Comparative and Historical Perspective1

Abstract

This study reveals the manner in which the anticipated legacies of the 1954 British Empire and Commonwealth Games held in Vancouver, British Columbia parallel those associated with sports mega-events since the 1980s. It also documents the extent to which pronouncements concerning the 1954 Games were echoed elsewhere among Commonwealth Games host cities between 1950 and 1990 and focused on pursuing urban legacies involving publicity, tourism revenues, economic development, and sports facilities. Recognizing both the prevalence and continuity of such rhetoric highlights the importance of historical and comparative examinations of urban campaigns to host high-visibility sporting events and, more specifically, underscores the importance of encouraging greater interaction between historians of sport and scholars engaged in examinations of contemporary urban developments associated with large-scale sports events.