GLASGOW: As Glasgow basks in the afterglow of hosting a popular 20th edition of the Commonwealth Games, Scotland’s largest city can reflect on a job well done even if the sporting action underwhelmed on a global scale.
Hailed as the best ever Games by Federation president Prince Tunku Imran, Glasgow charmed the 71 participating nations and territories that competed over the course of 11 days.
With approximately 1.2 million tickets sold, Glasgow ensured that athletes from all over the Commonwealth received full and noisy support wherever they competed - even if there were few show-stopping moments.
After several high-profile withdrawals, notably England’s double Olympic champion Mo Farah and Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake, the hopes of the Games rested on the world’s fastest man Usain Bolt.
The towering Jamaican did not disappoint after claiming gold in the men’s 4x100 metre relay but the fanfare he created also highlighted the dearth of world-class talent in Glasgow.
With traditionally powerful sporting nations like the United States, China and Russia not eligible to compete, the Games will always lack true world-class status.
But part of the Games’ charm is the fabled stories the diverse range of athletes have, be it Kiribati’s first female boxer Taoriba Biniati, Brunei’s only athlete in Glasgow - cyclist Muhammad I’maadi Abd Aziz - or Norfolk Island badminton player Richard Cribb, who practises on a converted dance floor.
Teenage gymnast Claudia Fragapane will have good reason to always remember these Games - the tiny 16-year-old, who stands just 4ft 5in tall, became the first Englishwoman in 84 years to win four gold medals at a single Commonwealth edition.
It is these stories that give the Games its own unique identity, drawing it out of the shadow of the Olympics.
The blanket television and radio coverage the Games received across Britain reflected the popularity it has among the Home Nations.Reuters
