Reuters/Auckland

Track cycling is at risk of being dropped from the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Durban unless more money is made available to build a new velodrome in South Africa. Track cycling has been a regular fixture on the Commonwealth Games programme since 1934 but remains an optional sport and South African officials say it could be omitted for 2022.
 “I met the president of the International Cycling Union and told him that if he wanted track cycling at 2022 then he needed to come to the party and help us build a velodrome,” Commonwealth Games Federation vice president Gideon Sam told reporters.
“We cannot afford to build a facility that will cost us millions and not be used.” Sam said if a velodrome was built, it would be located in the KwaZulu-Natal capital of Pietermaritzburg, located about 80 kilometres north-west of Durban.
“The city of Pietermaritzburg is pretty keen to have a park where a velodrome could be built so on the table right now is ‘come to the party cycling federation and the city of Pietermaritzburg will respond’.
“Until such time we cannot entertain a velodrome in South Africa.” If track cycling was left off the schedule, the loss would be felt most by Australia, England and New Zealand, who have dominated the sport, and split the 13 gold medals on offer at the last Commonwealth Games in Scotland in 2014.
“I don’t think there was a single African competitor in track cycling in Glasgow,” New Zealand Olympic Committee chief executive Kereyn Smith told reporters.
“So I don’t think there is a groundswell of support for track cycling in South Africa.
“Having said that it is an important sport for leading Commonwealth nations and is very appealing in terms of broadcasting rights so it does have an important part to play.
“Track cycling has been an optional sport for some time but it has been on every programme since 1934 ...so I have a sense there will be a lot of discussion as to the inclusion of that sport.”