But it is the following edition of the Commonwealth Games Federation’s (CGF) multi-sport extravaganza which is likely to be the hot topic during the meetings, discussions and venue tours as a dark cloud hangs over Durban 2022.

Sure, Gold Coast 2018 have faced their own issues - a dispute over the awarding of the Ceremonies tender, a perceived lack of locals within vital Games-delivery roles and the usual cost concerns that usually accompany the process being three - but these pale into insignificance compared with the travails of the South African city.

There, organisers have a bigger hill than the nearby Drakensberg, the highest mountain range in Southern Africa, to climb - even with six years still to prepare for the first Commonwealth Games in Africa. 

South African officials submitted key criteria required for them to remain as hosts by the November 30 deadline by the skin of their teeth but there remain major doubts whether the CGF will trust them to host their flagship event. 

The only other country to be stripped of the event was Johannesburg in 1934 when they lost the Empire Games and were replaced by London due to concerns about how black and Asian athletes would be treated in South Africa. 

The CGF’s statement confirming Durban 2022 had met the ultimatum date was hardly a ringing endorsement. They said they had "now received final submissions from the Durban bid team" and that these would be "evaluated thoroughly" before a final recommendation is made to the ruling Executive Committee. Whether deliberate or not, the scepticism from the body is evident. 

The organisation even reiterated the possibility of the 2022 event being staged in a city other than Durban. 

"The CGF’s focus remains on maintaining the momentum and impact of the previous successful Games in Glasgow and the next Games in the Gold Coast to ensure another successful and inspiring Games for athletes and fans in 2022 - either in Durban or an alternative host city - while continuing to liaise with a number of destinations and regions about their ambitions for 2026 and 2030," the CGF said.

In response, South African officials declared they were "committed" to holding the Games, yet it is precisely a lack of any such commitment that has left them clinging onto their hosting rights for dear life. After all, they have been saying the same thing for 15 months now without actually doing anything to show they really mean it. 

The attitude of Durban 2022 screams complacency. They have shown little - if any - urgency or any desire to get their preparations on track.

This is, quite frankly, startling considering we are not merely talking about cosmetic changes or fears that have been ramped up by the media; we are talking about fundamental, basic requirements which are expected of any Games host. These criteria, such as forming an Organising Committee, making necessary payments to the CGF and signing the Host City contract, are usually long established by this point, but none of these have yet fulfilled by Durban. These are conditions which should have been met last year.

Such is the task facing Durban 2022 that actually meeting a deadline represented a step forward for those behind the bid as they failed to set-up an Organising Committee within the agreed timeframe of 180 days from their confirmation as hosts. 

What also rankles is the distinct lack of fighting talk which has come from Durban throughout this rather tepid affair. Tubby Reddy, chief executive of the Durban 2022 Bid and South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC), even refused to speak to insidethegames editor Duncan Mackay about the situation at the CGF General Assembly in Edmonton in October. "I don't talk to the media," he told Mackay. Attempts to contact SASCOC about the situation usually go unanswered. 

It is as Durban 2022 feel that they had done enough simply by emerging triumphant in a one-horse race after Edmonton's withdrawal because of falling oil prices. 

Gideon Sam, the President of SASCOC and a CGF vice-president, admitted at the CGF Assembly in October that Durban's hosting of the Games “hangs in the balance”.

But after the documents were submitted to the CGF last Wednesday, Sam seemed to be under the mis-apprehension they had done enough. "We were asked to upload all the information they were asking for from SASCOC and Sport and Recreation and that's been done,” he told Eyewitness News. "We dealt specifically with the areas they asked of us – from the Director General, SASCOC, the city and the Province."

The CGF have every right to be both frustrated and angry. Glasgow 2014 catapulted the Commonwealth Games to never before seen heights, with spectacular sporting action complimented by the city falling in love with the event, and it seems Gold Coast 2018 are on course to follow suit. The same could not be said for Durban.

What happens next remains a mystery. The CGF’s statement admitted it could take "up to six weeks" for a decision on Durban to be taken but South African officials will feel confident they have made the first step on the path to recovery.

It is a path which may prove longer than they had anticipated, yet the CGF’s Executive Committee could still stop the belated efforts of Durban 2022 dead in their tracks. While it would perhaps be premature to suggest an alternative host could be in place by Christmas, the South African city making history looks a long, long way off.