- A new year brings new opportunities, new optimism and for 2026, the tantalising prospect of a new Commonwealth Games!
"VAN" (Sports Desk - 02.01.2026) :: The 23rd edition will land in Glasgow on 23 July with around 3,000 athletes from 74 Commonwealth Games Associations expected to competefor 215 gold medals, across 10 sports, during 11 days of what promises to be awesome action.
Birmingham 2022 saw the then 21-year-old land the first major senior international medal of her career with 100m silver, behind Jamaican sprinting legend Elene Thompson-Herah.
Come Glasgow 2026, Saint Lucia star Julien Alfred will likely enter the Games as the favourite, having claimed Olympic 100m gold as well as 200m silver at Paris 2024.
“It’s not often that we get to represent our nation on the global stage and it’s a great time for people from across the Commonwealth to celebrate their athletes,” says Alfred.
“For me personally I’m looking forward to 2026 and aiming to upgrade that silver (from Birmingham 2022) to gold. I have the Olympic gold, World Indoor gold and Commonwealth gold is certainly one I’d like to add to my collection.”
Olivia Breen made her Commonwealth debut just a day after turning 18 back at the Glasgow 2014 Games, making that bow in a new event for her, the T37/38 long jump.
She had previously specialised exclusively in the T38 100m and 200m sprints, but this addition to the programme would ultimately enable her claim a maiden Commonwealth gold four years later at Gold Coast 2018. She would then attain victory in the 100m at Birmingham 2022.
“While competing with Great Britain is special, nothing beats competing for Wales, it’s something else,” says Breen. “The Commonwealth Games is such a special event as well because the Para events really help with publicity and inspiring the next generation.
“I have cerebral palsy and through sport I’ve been able to get my body to do things that I never thought it would be able to do, so it’s important to highlight how sport can help people with disabilities and I’m really grateful to have opportunities.
Breen continues; “Glasgow was my first Commonwealth Games when I was just 17-18 and now to be going back at the age of 30 is really exciting.”
World Bowls Hall of Fame inductee Kelsey Cottrell made her debut at Delhi 2010 and went on to win bronze, silver and then gold across the respective 2010, 2014 and 2018 Games.
‘Mum duties’ saw her miss Birmingham 2022, but the Australian, who has made more than 500 appearances for her nation, is targeting a major Commonwealth comeback at Glasgow 2026.
“I’ve played in three Commonwealth Games and had some great successes with bronze (2010), then silver (2014) and then gold (2018), so I’m hoping to have the experience of being selected to come back to this Commonwealth Games,” she says.
“It’s very exciting (for Glasgow 2026) to not be in a traditional bowls venue, but in a stadium kind of setting, where the atmosphere will just be so amazing.
Cottrell continues; “I think it’s an amazing opportunity for bowls and hopefully we’ll get so much television coverage and I think everyone back in Australia is really excited about the potential for bowls to really take off after these Commonwealth Games.”
Few would find the character to find the positives from a life-changing leg amputation which following an admission of ‘clinical negligence’ by those who carried out a separate medical procedure, but Pauline Wilson is not like many others.
The 61-year-old possesses incredible fight and passion, which not only helped her rehabilitation but has driven her desire for sporting success over recent years.
Wilson was part of Scotland’s all-conquering Para Bowls squad at Birmingham 2022, who won each of the three gold medals, with Wilson partnering Rosemary Lenton to victory in the Women’s B6-8 category. She is targeting the same at her home Games.
“For bowlers, the Commonwealth Games is our Olympics so it is the pinnacle of our sport,” states Wilson.
“Birmingham 2022 it was absolutely fantastic as we actually had our own ladies Para Bowls event to compete in. Even now it feels surreal to say I’m a Commonwealth Games gold medallist, but I’m hoping we can do the same next year (at Glasgow 2026) because I live just 20 minutes along the road so it would be wonderful to do it on home soil.
Wilson continues; “We have so many bowling greens and bowlers here around Glasgow and I think it will be really great and so well supported next year.”
3x3 Wheelchair Basketball made a spectacular Commonwealth Games debut as part of a true celebration of all-things 3x3 at Birmingham 2022 and Robyn Love was among those who revelled in the ‘party’ atmosphere.
The Glasgow 2026 Athlete Ambassador is adamant the Scottish crowd will more than rival their English counterparts for support come Games-time.
“Glasgow has stepped up, Scotland has stepped up and it's incredible to see a small country like ours really showing that the power of the Commonwealth Games is still important,” she says.
“For a lot of athletes, like myself, it's the only opportunity to represent internationally for Scotland, so the fact that I get through it at home, 30 minutes from where I grew up (in Ayre) in Glasgow, is just awesome.
Love continues; “Scottish fans, they get behind their teams, but they also love an underdog and the Commonwealth Games is full of them, so there's no doubt they're going to be cheering all the teams on and show and show them a lot of support.”
Jamell Anderson will be 36 when the Glasgow 2026 Games get underway in July and the forward is already in semi-retirement, having ended his domestic career last year.
He has taken up a role in the corporate world, as a sales director for Worldpay, but the opportunity to help his nation defend the historic 3x3 Basketball title they claimed in 2022 was too strong an opportunity to miss.
“It (Birmingham 2022) was a huge moment in my life and career, my wife and mum was there and it was a true reflection of the Games, a community feel, so to win the gold in front of them all was unbelievable,” he recalls.
“I’ve always been really patriotic and after leaving pro sport (domestically), it’s an honour to still be playing for England and focus on winning another medal at the Commonwealth Games.
“Glasgow (organising company) are basically superheroes in my eyes, as it was very upsetting to see what happened (Victoria 2026) and there was a lot of uncertainty, but Glasgow stepped up and I’ll forever be grateful.”
India place ninth in the all-time medal table for Commonwealth Games boxing honours, but they are a rapidly improving nation and will be expected to climb significantly in the standings following the Glasgow 2026 and their home Games – Amdavad 2030.
Jasmine Lamboria claimed bronze at Birmingham 2022, but in the years since she has emerged as one of the strongest Featherweight boxers on the planet, underlining that status with World gold in 2025.
“I’m looking forward to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2026,” says Lamboria, who was heavily inspired by pioneering Indian boxer Mary Kom - their nation’s first-ever female boxing Commonwealth champion, at Gold Coast 2018.
“She is my role model from the beginning and all other girls as well, she unlocked the paths for us and we’re looking at her and we also want to one day make India proud like she did.
Lamboria continues; “When the dates (for Glasgow 2026) were officially announced we felt really good and our training and practice started from there, so we’ll do our very best to do well at the Games.”
In 2016 Marios Georgiou made headlines in his homeland by becoming the first gymnast to represent Cyprus at an Olympic Games in a men’s All Around competition. It gave the then 18-year-old the confidence to pursue other “dreams” – such as at Gold Coast 2018.
There he claimed two titles and a bronze. While he finished third a further four times at Birmingham 2022, those were impressive achievements given he suffered a pre-Games shoulder injury and had been advised to skip the competition by medical professionals.
“The Commonwealth Games will always be an important competition for me because I remember how it gave me the opportunity (at Gold Coast 2018) to shine,” he recalls. “That success was I experienced, with the with the two gold medals (Floor and Parallel Bars) and the All-around bronze gave me a lot of confidence and it was also good for my physical and mental health in terms of everything that followed.
Georgiou continues; “After the Olympics in Paris I took a bit of time away from the sport and although I’m competing at the World Championships this year, Glasgow 2026 is my big target. “I want to show my best self for my country, but also the younger gymnasts so they can see that if an ‘old guy’ can do this, then there should be nothing stopping them.”
Sarah Adlington will be just days short of her 40th birthday when she takes to the tatami mat at Glasgow 2026 and after many standout moments from across Commonwealth Games, Olympics, World and British Championships, she says victory in her home country would be the “perfect” ending to an outstanding career.
“I think it’s so important for Scottish sport that Scottish athletes have the opportunity to compete for Scotland and to have the opportunity to do it at a home Games, there’s nothing quite like it,” says Adlington, who won gold medals at Glasgow 2014 and Birmingham 2022.
“The crowds in 2014 were absolutely amazing and the excitement people on the streets was like nothing I’d ever experienced in my like. It was like living in a bubble and I had such a great time, in fact probably one of the best times of my life was at Glasgow 2014.
Adlington continues; “Glasgow 2014 was my first multi-sport event and I think it (Glasgow 2026), as a swansong, will be a fitting way to end what I’ve done in my career and it’s an opportunity too good to be missed.”
Only three nations have stood on the top step of a Commonwealth Games podium in the sport of Netball, with Australia leading on four wins (1998, 2014, 2002, 2022), whilst New Zealand have attained two (2006 and 2010) and England one (2018).
The Silver Ferns are feeling confident about their 2026 prospects after making significant progress in the years since their bronze medal-winning performance at Birmingham 2022, in which Grace Nweke played a staring role.
“I’m so excited for the prospect of Glasgow 2026 as the Commonwealth Games mean a lot to me,” says Nweke. “Birmingham 2022 was my first pinnacle event and first taste of top-level sport and I was so inspired by all of the athletes around and so proud to be part of the New Zealand team.
“I went into it really hungry and it still really hurst me that semi-final we lost to Jamaica to not be able to play-off for the gold medal match, but my proudest moment is still winning that bronze medal against England, as it was a massive game for me as a player and person.
Nweke continues; “To be looking at a second Commonwealth Games is a massive honour, so exciting and I feel I have even more to give now, which I’m excited to be able to show.”
Athletes from Singapore first contested a Commonwealth Games at the sixth edition of the multi-sport event, Cardiff 1958, but it took until 2014 for a swimmer from the nation to claim a medal.
Since then they have attained at least one across Gold Coast 2018 and Birmingham 2022, with Teong Tzen Wei their latest star after attaining 50m Butterfly silver nearly four years ago. He will again be among Singapore’s leading contenders come Glasgow 2026, particularly with England's defending champion Ben Proud aving left the sport.
"Winning silver in the 50m butterfly at the 2022 Commonwealth Games was a special experience that remains a treasured memory for me today,” says Tze Wei.
“That achievement has continued to be one of my sources of motivation as I train towards reaching my swimming goals. I've grown a lot as an athlete since then, and I hope this progress shows in the pool at Glasgow 2026."
Teenager Husnah Kukundakwe has been mixing with the best para swimmers on the planet since her history-making Games debut at Tokyo 2020, where at the age of 15 she became the first athlete to represent Uganda Paralympic swimming for over 20 years.
She followed that by achieving another landmark at Birmingham 2022, which saw her become the first para swimmer from her nation to compete at a Commonwealth Games. Kukundakwe aims to attain a historic first-ever para swimming medal come Glasgow 2026.
“It’s always an honour to represent my country and to race at a Commonwealth Games is not an opportunity every Ugandan has, which makes me very appreciative,” she says.
“I was probably starstruck 90% of the time in Birmingham (2022 Commonwealth Games), because I’d look to my left and I’d see Adam Peaty and then to my right I’m seeing Kaylee McKeown and there is no other event where I would be able to see this integration with Para Swimming.
Kukumdakwe continues; “The Commonwealth Games brings people together and I see it (Glasgow 2026) as another opportunity to learn, explore and collaborate with people from other countries in a friendly, but competitive environment.”
Rhianna Parris-Smith was once dreaming of success on a very different type of track, with the former 100m and 200m specialist pushing for the podium as an athletics sprinter.
A Talent ID transfer programme, Homes 2 Games, saw her potential on the bike and around the time of the last edition of the Commonwealth Games the English athlete made the full-time switch. Success has certainly followed.
Now, subject to selection – which she is well-placed to achieve – Parris-Smith will line up in her ‘new’ sport at Glasgow 2026.
“It's going to be really cool,” she says. “I got on the squad when the Commonwealths were last going on and when everyone went off to the Games. “I saw all the behind-the-scenes, so it will be nice to actually be part of it and experience Scotland as well, so I’m excited – pending selection!”
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