Birmingham 2022: The Queen ‘pulls out of Commonwealth Games and is replaced by Charles’

The Queen will reportedly not attend the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and will be replaced by the Prince of Wales.

There are 49 days to go until the 2022 Games open in the city and other West Midlands venues on July 28, running until August 8.

The Daily Mail reported the Queen will not attend the Games and Charles will appear in her stead at the opening ceremony.

Other members of the royal family are expected to also attend sporting events throughout the tournament, the paper added.

Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games chief executive Ian Reid told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that the Queen’s non-attendance at the event had not yet been confirmed by Buckingham Palace - and that organisers and that they were awaing news on the Royal Family’s plans.

After the decision to strip Durban as host city, Birmingham had only a four-and-a-half-year cycle to prepare for the multi-sport showpiece event rather than the usual seven.

The Queen, who is also head of the Commonwealth, reached her Platinum Jubilee in February, becoming the first British sovereign to mark 70 years on the throne.

The 96-year-old monarch was absent for much of last weekend’s Jubilee celebrations, appearing in person for just over 27 minutes throughout the various days.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. BirminghamWorld is Birmingham’s latest news website, championing everything that is great about our city - reporting on news, lifestyle and sport. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.