Sellers says he hopes fans will be able to enjoy "the sports they know and love along with emerging sports that are growing", when the multi-sport event comes to Birmingham in Alabama in July 2022.

Drone racing, canoe marathon, breaking, women's fistball, parkour and men’s lacrosse are all on the World Games programme for the first time at Birmingham 2022.

Non-Olympic sports and disciplines are typically contested at the World Games, and tug of war, finswimming, flying disc, tenpin bowling and powerlifting are among other sports on the Birmingham 2022 programme.

"There are few things that bring humanity together from all walks of life more than sports and competition and music," said Sellers, as reported by Birmingham Now.

"This is going to be an incredible moment for our community.

"Competition has always brought out the interesting part of humanity that we all can connect to, by watching an individual athlete or a team go through struggles and failures."

Around 3,600 athletes are set to compete at the Birmingham 2022 World Games, scheduled for July 7 to 17, with Sellers saying he hopes the event will help the area’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

"Any great community ultimately has its coming of age moment and goes through failures, struggles, let-downs and moments where we wonder if it can continue to grow and survive," he said.

Organisers recently announced a series of strategies in a bid to make the event as inclusive and accessible as possible, and Sellers said the inclusion of events for people with disabilities was part of this.

"This is the first major international multi-sport event with sport competitions for athletes with and without disabilities on the same programme," said Sellers.

"The Paralympics and the Olympics are coming together - but not before Birmingham, Alabama can lay claim."