Australia at the Commonwealth Games
has won 13 Commonwealth games.
Australia first competed at the Games, then titled the British Empire Games, in 1930; and is one of only six countries to have sent athletes to every Commonwealth Games. The others are Canada, England, New Zealand, Scotland, and Wales.
Six of the 21 games have been hosted by Australia, with the city of Gold Coast hosting the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Australia has placed first at 13 out of the 21 games and has been in the top three for all meets except the first games in 1930.
After the 2006 Games, Australia was first in the all-time medal tally.
In all but one of the 18 Commonwealth Games held so far, the Australian flag bearer has gone on to win a gold medal.
List of Games Host Nation Bids
Games Staged
Australia has hosted the Commonwealth Games on four occasions but have only won once via an international vote. That vote was for the host of the 2018 games, won by the Gold Coast.Sydney 1938 was simply awarded.
Perth 1962 was a contest between Adelaide and Perth which Adelaide originally won at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. Adelaide first won 13 votes to Perth's 3. Two years later that was overturned by the Australian Commonwealth Games Association prior to the 1958 British Empire Games in Cardiff, Wales. A New Vote awarded Perth with a 9 to 7 vote.
Brisbane 1982 was awarded after Lagos, Nigeria; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Birmingham, England all withdrew prior to the Bid vote that took place in Montreal, Quebec, Canada during the 1976 Summer Olympics.
Melbourne 2006 was awarded to the city after Wellington, New Zealand withdrew their bid prior to the Bid Lodgement Deadline.
| Year | Host City, State | Years Between |
| 2018 Commonwealth Games | Gold Coast, Queensland | 12 |
| 2006 Commonwealth Games | Melbourne, Victoria | 24 |
| 1982 Commonwealth Games | Brisbane, Queensland | 20 |
| 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games | Perth, Western Australia | 24 |
| 1938 British Empire Games | Sydney, New South Wales | - |
Failed bid Results
Medals
Overall Medal Tally
Positions are calculated by the number of gold medals earned, then the number of silvers is taken into consideration and then the number of bronze.Figures from Commonwealth Games Foundation website. Those represented in bold are the highest scoring medal tally for each individual medal.
The 2006 Games saw the highest overall medal tally, including the highest number of silver and bronze medals. The 1994 Games remains the Games with the highest number of gold medals won for Australia.
Games Summary
Overall Medal Tally by Sport
Overall total of medals achieved for each individual Commonwealth Games sporting area from 1930–2006.Progressive Medal Tally
Figures from Commonwealth Games Foundation website.Numbers of athletes and sports
This list shows the total number of athletes, male and female, and the total sports they were selected to compete in.| Year | Athletes | Male | Female | Sports |
| 2006 | 426 | 220 | 206 | 18 |
| 2002 | 371 | |||
| 1998 | 320 | |||
| 1994 | 250 | |||
| 1990 | 248 | |||
| 1986 | 235 | |||
| 1982 | 210 | |||
| 1978 | 148 | |||
| 1974 | ||||
| 1970 | ||||
| 1966 | ||||
| 1962 | ||||
| 1958 | ||||
| 1954 | ||||
| 1950 | ||||
| 1938 | ||||
| 1934 | ||||
| 1930 |
Team & Individual Competitor Achievements
Notable Achievements
Represented at most Games
- Arthur Tunstall has represented Australia as an official at 8 Commonwealth Games.
- Donald Stockins has represented Australia as an official at 8 Commonwealth Games.
- Shooter Bruce Quick has represented at 7 Commonwealth Games 1990, 1998, 2002,2006,2010,2014 and 2018
- Shooter Phillip Adams has competed in 6 Commonwealth Games.
Best Individual Medal Achievements
Most gold medals won
- Swimmer Susie O'Neill won 10 gold medals at three successive Games.
- Swimmer Ian Thorpe won 10 gold medals at two successive Games.
- Swimmer Leisel Jones won 10 gold medals at three successive Games.
Most gold medals won at a single Games
- Swimmer Susie O'Neill won 6 gold medals at the 1998 Games.
- Swimmer Ian Thorpe won 6 gold medals at the 2002 Games.
Most medals won by a competitor
- Shooter Phillip Adams has won 18 medals at five Games.
- Swimmer Susie O'Neill has won 15 medals at three Games.
- Shooter Bruce Quick has won 14 medals at 6 games.
Oldest gold medal winner
- Dorothy Roche, was 61 years and 10 months old when she won a gold medal in the women's fours in Bowls at the 1990 Games.
Youngest gold medal winner
- Jenny Turrall, was 13 years, 8 months old when she won a gold medal in the 400m freestyle at Christchurch, New Zealand in 1974. Jenny Turrall also won Silver medals in the 200m Freestyle, 800m Freestyle and the women's 4x100 Freestyle Relay at the 1974 Christchurch Games.
Winning Streaks
- Swimming, Men's 4 × 200 m
- Swimming, Men's 4 × 100 m
- Swimming, Women's 4 × 100 m Medley
- Men's Hockey
Australian Records Achieved at Commonwealth Games
- WR: World Record
- CR: Commonwealth Record
- AR: Australian Record
- GR: Games Record
Record Summary
| Year | WR | CR | AR | GR | Total |
| 2006 | |||||
| 2002 | 6 | 44 | 50 | ||
| 1998 | 20 | 20 | |||
| 1994 | 29 | 29 | |||
| 1990 | 7 | 7 | |||
| 1986 | 6 | 6 | |||
| 1982 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1978 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1974 | 1 | 1 | |||
| 1970 | 3 | 3 | |||
| 1966 | 14 | 14 | |||
| 1962 | 5 | 5 | |||
| 1958 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1954 | 3 | 3 | |||
| 1950 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1938 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1934 | 2 | 2 | |||
| 1930 | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 6 | 139 | 145 |
2002
- 6 World Records were set during these Games.
- 44 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 2002 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| WR | Cycling | 4,000 m Team Pursuit | Team: Graeme Brown, Peter Dawson, Mark Renshaw, Luke Roberts | 4:04.034 | |
| WR | Cycling | 4,000 m Team Pursuit | Team: Graeme Brown, Peter Dawson, Mark Renshaw, Luke Roberts | 3:59.583 | |
| WR | Swimming | 50 m Freestyle Multi Disability | Ben Austin | 27.48 | |
| WR | Swimming | 100 m Freestyle Multi Disability | Ben Austin | 1:00.21 | |
| WR | Swimming | 100 m Freestyle Multi Disability | Ben Austin | 1:00.27 | |
| WR | Swimming | 400 m Freestyle | Ian Thorpe | 3:40.08 | |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 20 km Walk | Nathan Deakes | 1:25.35 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 20 km Walk | Jane Saville | 1:36.34 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 4 × 400 m Relay | Australia | 3:25.63 | |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 50 km Walk | Nathan Deakes | 3:52.40 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's Marathon | Kerryn McCann | 2:30.05 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's Pole Vault | Tatiana Grigorieva | 4.35 | |
| GR | Athletics | Men's Shot Put | Justin Anlezark | 20.91 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 20 km Scratch Race | Graeme Brown | 24:14.660 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's 25 km Points Race | Katherine Bates | 37 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 4000 m Individual Pursuit | Bradley "Brad" McGee | 4:16.358 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's 500 m Time Trial | Kerrie Meares | 35.084 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Road Race | Stuart O'Grady | 4:43:17 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Road Time Trial | Cadel Evans | 1:00:53.50 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Team Sprint | Australia | 44.506 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's 25 m Standard Pistol | Lalita Yauhleuskaya | 686.8 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's 25 m Standard Pistol | Australia | 1150 | |
| GR | Shooting | Men's 50 m Free Rifle-3 Position | Australia | 2297 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's 50 m Rifle Prone | Kim Frazer | 588 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Skeet | Lauryn Ogilvie | 93 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Skeet | Australia | 95 | |
| GR | Shooting | Men's Trap | Australia | 187 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Trap | Australia | 90 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 100 m Backstroke | Matt Welsh | 0:54.72 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 100 m Butterfly | Geoff Huegill | 0:52.36 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 100 m Butterfly | Petria Thomas | 0:58.57 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 100 m Freestyle | Ian Thorpe | 48.73 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 100 m Multi Disability Freestyle | Ben Austin | ||
| GR | Swimming | Men's 200 m Butterfly | Justin Norris | 1:56.95 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 200 m Freestyle | Ian Thorpe | 1:44.71 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 400 m Freestyle | Ian Thorpe | 3:40.08 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 400 m Individual Medley | Justin Norris | 4:16.95 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 4 × 100 m Freestyle Relay | Australia | 3:16.42 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 4 × 100 m Freestyle Relay | Australia | 3:40.41 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 4 × 100 m Medley Relay | Australia | 3:36.05 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 4 × 100 m Medley Relay | Australia | 4:03.70 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 4 × 200 m Freestyle Relay | Australia | 7:11.69 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 50 m Backstroke | Matt Welsh | 25.65 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 50 m Backstroke | Dyana Calub | 28.98 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 50 m Butterfly | Geoff Huegill | 23.57 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 50 m Butterfly | Petria Thomas | 26.66 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 50 m Multi Disability Freestyle | Ben Austin | ||
| GR | Weightlifting | Women's 75 kg+ Snatch | Caroline Pileggi | 100.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 77 kg Snatch | Damian Brown | 147.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 94 kg Snatch | Alex Karapetyn | 167.5 |
1998
- 20 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1998 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 10 km Road Walk | Jane Saville | 43:57 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 184 km Road Race | Jay Sweet | 4:31:56 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's 24 km Points Race | Alayna Burns | 34 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's Road Race | Anna Wilson | 37:34 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Sprint | Darryn Hill | 10.533 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Air Pistol | Annemarie Forder | 480.6 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Air Pistol | Australia | 748 | |
| GR | Shooting | Men's Smallbore Rifle 3 Position | Timothy Lowndes | 1235.3 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Smallbore Sport Rifle 3 Position | Susan McCready | 667.3 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Smallbore Sport Rifle Prone | Australia | 1174 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Sport Pistol | Australia | 1140 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 200m Butterfly | Susie O'Neill | 2:06.60 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 200m Individual Medley | Matthew Dunn | 2:00.26 | |
| GR | Tenpin Bowling | Women's Doubles | Australia | 3678 | |
| GR | Tenpin Bowling | Mixed Doubles | Australia | 3605 | |
| GR | Tenpin Bowling | Women's Singles | Cara Honeychurch | 6406 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 77 kg Clean and Jerk | Damian Brown | 187.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 77 kg Combined | Damian Brown | 327.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 94 kg Clean and Jerk | Kiril Kounev | 205.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 94 kg Combined | Kiril Kounev | 370.0 |
1994
- 29 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1994 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Men's Marathon Wheelchair | Paul Wiggins | 1:37.33 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 10 Mile | Stuart O'Grady | 18:50.520 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 100 km Team Time Trial | Australia | 1:53:19.13 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's 25 km Team Time Trial | Australia | 1:04:03.20 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 4000 m Team Pursuit | Australia | 4:10.485 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 40 km Points Race | Brett Aitken | 38 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's Road Race | Kathryn "Kathy" Watt | 2:48:04.73 | |
| GR | Shooting | Fullbore Rifle Queens Prize - Open | Australia | 593 | |
| GR | Shooting | Men's Running Target | Bryan Wilson | 657.9 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Smallbore Rifle Prone | Australia | 1160 | |
| GR | Shooting | Women's Sport Pistol | Christine Trefry | 679.4 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 100 m Breaststroke | Samantha Riley | 1:08.02 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 100 m Freestyle S9 | Melissa Carlton | 1:09.61 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 1500 m Freestyle | Kieren Perkins | 14:41.66 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 200 m Breaststroke | Samantha Riley | 2:25.53 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg + Clean and Jerk | Stefan Botev | 200.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg + Combined | Stefan Botev | 360.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg + Snatch | Steven Kettner | 165.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg Clean and Jerk | Nicu Vlad | 220.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg Combined | Nicu Vlad | 405.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 108 kg Snatch | Nicu Vlad | 185.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 64 kg Combined | Sevdalin Marinov | 277.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 76 kg Clean and Jerk | Damian Brown | 182.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 83 kg Clean and Jerk | Kiril Kounev | 200.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 83 kg Combined | Kiril Kounev | 352.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 83 kg Snatch | Kiril Kounev | 152.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 91 kg Clean and Jerk | Harvey Goodman | 200.0 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 91 kg Combined | Harvey Goodman | 362.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 91 kg Snatch | Harvey Goodman | 162.5 |
1990
- 7 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1990 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Men's Hammer Throw | Sean Carlin | 75.66 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's Heptathlon | Jane Flemming | 6695 | |
| GR | Cycling | Men's 50 km Points Race | Robert Burns | 81 | |
| GR | Cycling | Women's Road Race | Kathryn "Kathy" Watt | 1:55:11.60 | |
| GR | Shooting | Men's 50 m/Free Pistol | Australia | 1106 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 400 m Individual Medley | Hayley Lewis | 4:42.65 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 75 kg Clean and Jerk | Ronald Laycock | 177.5 |
1986
- 6 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1986 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 30 km Road Walk | Simon Francis Baker | 2:07.47 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's Shot Put | Gael Martin | 19.00 | |
| GR | Rowing | Men's Eight Oared Shell | Australia | 5:44.42 | |
| GR | Rowing | Women's Eight Oared Shell | Australia | 6:43.69 | |
| GR | Rowing | Men's Lightweight Single Sculls | Peter Antonie | 7:16.43 | |
| GR | Rowing | Women's Lightweight Single Sculls | Adair Ferguson | 7:45.49 |
1978
- 2 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1978 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Road Race | Phillip Anderson | 4:22:34.41 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 800 m Freestyle | Tracey Wickham | 8:24.62 |
1974
- 1 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1974 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Cycling | Men's Road Race | Clyde Sefton | 5:07:16.87 |
1970
- 3 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1970 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 20 Mile Walk | Noel Freeman | 2:33:33 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 110 kg + Combined | Raymond Rigby | 500 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 52 kg Combined | George Vasiliades | 290 |
1966
- 14 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1966 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 100 Yard Dash | Dianne Burge | 10.6 | |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 100 Yard Dash | Michael Van Der Velde | 10.1 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 440 Yard Run/Quarter Mile | Judith Pollock | 53.0 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 4x110 Yard Relay | Australia | 45.3 | |
| GR | Athletics | Men's 880 Yard Run/Half-Mile | Noel Clough | 1:46.9 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 110 Yards Breaststroke | Ian O'Brien | 1:08.2 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 110 Yards Freestyle | Michael Wenden | 54.0 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 220 Yard Backstroke | Peter Reynolds | 2:12.0 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 220 Yards Breaststroke | Ian O'Brien | 2:29.3 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 440 Yards Freestyle | Robert Windle | 4:15.0 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 440 Yards Freestyle | Kathryn Wainwright | 4:38.8 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 440 Yards Freestyle Relay | Australia | 3:35.6 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 440 Yards Individual Medley | Peter Reynolds | 4:50.8 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 880 Yards Freestyle Relay | Australia | 7:59.5 | |
| GR | Weightlifting | Men's 82.5 kg Combined | George Vakakis | 925.5 |
1962
- 5 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1962 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 880 Yard Run/Half-Mile | Dixie Willis | 2:03.7 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 110 Yards Butterfly | Kevin Berry | 0:59.5 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 110 Yards Freestyle | Dawn Fraser | 0:59.5 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 1650 Yards Freestyle | Murray Rose | 17:18.1 | |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 220 Yards Butterfly | Kevin Berry | 2:10.8 |
1958
- 3 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1958 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 220 Yard Dash | Marlene Mathews-Willard | 23.6 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 80 m H | Norma Thrower | 10.7 | |
| GR | Rowing | Men's Singles Sculls | Stuart MacKenzie | 7:20.1 |
1950
- 2 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1950 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 440 yard relay | Australia | 47.9 | |
| GR | Athletics | Women's 660 Yard Relay | Australia | 1:13.4 |
1934
- 2 Commonwealth Games Records were set in the 1934 Games.
| Type | Sport | Discipline | Athlete/Team | Record | Margin |
| GR | Swimming | Men's 1500 Yards Freestyle | Noel Ryan | 18:25.4 | |
| GR | Swimming | Women's 200 Yards Breaststroke | Clare Dennis | 2:50.2 |