The ties of Empire, still felt so fiercely by many back in 1930, have cooled and transmuted. As the name changes have underlined, the perception of Empire has changed to the point where it is now not mentioned - indeed, in recent years, Britain has been called upon to apologise for it by nations profoundly affected by it.

A recent posting on The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) site acu.au.uk, pointed out: "It could be said that the ‘Friendly Games’ moniker is a misnomer for the Commonwealth Games. 

"After all, they emerged from an empire marked by the subjugation of, and violence towards, millions of people across the world, underpinned by white supremacy and racism…."

It is not clear who first ascribed this the "friendly" characteristic to the enterprise set in motion by the vision and dynamism of a Canadian sports journalist, Melville Marks “Bobby” Robinson, who was the man who pushed and prodded the Vancouver governing authorities to stage the first Games of 1930.

The tone of that ascription was set by Robinson’s guiding remark about a sporting gathering: "The Games should be merrier and less stern and will substitute the stimulus of novel adventure for the pressure of international rivalry."

The Games notion had emerged in reaction to a distinct lack of friendliness experienced by Robinson during his duties as manager of the Canadian athletics team at the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics.

The Toronto Star reported that meetings to discuss the Empire Games were held in Amsterdam "as a direct result of the dominance, real or attempted, by Germany and the United States at the Olympic meet … Robinson finally boiled over and, after consultation with other Canadian officials, met representatives of the other British teams."

Canada lodged an official complaint at the Olympics, citing a number of incidents including the lack of a national flag when Percy Williams received his 100 metres gold medal, the fact that American athletes were allowed to train on the track but Canadian athletes were not, a disputed judges’ decision in the women’s 100m, where Canada felt their sprinter had been wrongly denied victory in favour of an American, and a direct insult to a Canadian team official delivered by Avery Brundage, then the most influential American in the Olympic Movement.

The Toronto Star wrote of "serious trouble brewing between the Canadian and US teams and between the Canadian representatives and the International Olympic Committee."

At one point Robinson told one IOC member: "We know the Canadians are getting the run-around here and we don’t like it!"

He wanted the Empire Games to be about "sport for sport’s sake, devoid of petty jealousies and sectional prejudices," adding: "The event will be designed on an Olympic model, but these Games will be very different…"

Certainly Robinson’s proposed "merriment" has been conspicuously absent at some moments in the Games history. Most notably when the Games returned for a second time to Edinburgh, after a period of 16 years, in 1986.

A proposed rugby union tour of New Zealand by South Africa prompted 31 countries, largely from Africa and the Caribbean, to boycott the Edinburgh Games in protest against the South Africans’ apartheid policy - even though South Africa had not been present in the Games in 1958 (and would not be welcomed back until 1994).

But 92 years on the Games coming to a close in Birmingham today have embodied "friendly" unfailingly.

As the ACU post goes on to say: "Convening the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham has symbolism in terms of place and the politics of race. 

"The city, with its population of 1.2 million people, is the most youthful and ethnically diverse in Europe.

"This rich legacy of migration goes back centuries, taking in mass movement from Ireland in the mid-1850s, Commonwealth migration from India, Pakistan and the Caribbean in the post-1945 period, European migration - especially from eastern Europe - following the expansion of the European Union in the 2000s, and a significant flow of communities from Africa and the Middle East in the last 20 years."

For all who have experienced the city over the past 12 days there have been countless opportunities to experience a sporting atmosphere that has exuded the spirit that Robinson envisioned.

The city’s central squares have become fair fields of folk in opportune sunshine. Thousands have lounged in giant deckchairs watching action from the Games on big screens. 

Morning after morning, evening after evening, the re-built Alexander Stadium has filled its tall new stands with audiences ready to be appreciative of athletics efforts of world class, and sometimes less than world-class level.

The fresh and genuine responsiveness of these huge audiences underlined once again that what people want to see from sport is genuine, unpredictable competition.

For sure, home heroes and heroines received special cheers - but in a city such as Birmingham that means heroes and heroines in diverse colours.

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games has been a beautiful gathering, extravagantly managing the task that has been ascribed to it on the eve of competition by the West Midlands Mayor Andy Street when he said:

"Now we’ve got a world that’s been split apart by COVID, we have a world that has been split apart by war in Ukraine, and we’ve got, in Britain, a Government that’s got to re-find itself.

"So actually the pressures, the tensions that break people apart - we desperately need this to be a festival of unity and solidarity, celebrating the best things in human nature.

"Respect, equality, dignity, and of course sportsmanship.

"So there is an incredible responsibility for Birmingham 2022."

Tick the box. Job done.