format for smaller cities, and countries to host what had become an expensive event for a singular city to host. Precedents set While the opening ceremony was a regimented and very formal affair, the late afternoon closing ceremony was anything but. This set a precedent for other closing ceremonies since then. With the formalities out of the way, the handing over of the flag to representatives of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, the athletes broke ranks and ran amok, much to the delight of the packed stadium and the Queen herself. A flypast of the then Red Checkers RNZAF display team brought the ceremony to a close as the Queen and Prince Philip did a lap of honour around the stadium and departed. The youngest competitor at the games was New Zealander Rebecca Perrott, 12; swimming for Fiji at the games, as her father was Registrar at the University of the South Pacific. Participating teams 38 teams were represented at the 1974 Games.(Teams competing for the first time are shown in bold). Medals by country Medals by event Athletics Badminton Bowls Boxing Cycling Track Road Diving Shooting Pistol Rifle Shotgun Swimming Men's events Women's events Weightlifting Wrestling See also The Games Affair Sir Ron Scott Footnotes References Official History of the Xth British Commonwealth Games edited by A. R. Cant (1974, Christchurch) External links Commonwealth Games Official Site 1974 Games on Australian Commonwealth Games official website Games 74 – a full-length documentary film of the 1974 Commonwealth Games in Christchurch on NZ On Screen Commonwealth Games in New Zealand Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games by year International sports competitions hosted by New Zealand 1970s in Christchurch Sports competitions in Christchurch Commonwealth Games 1974 in the British Empire January 1974 sports events in New Zealand February 1974 sports events in New Zealand 1970s in New Zealand