Glasgow 2014: Commonwealths hailed best in 84-year history

 

Glasgow 2014 has been hailed as "the standout Games in the history of the movement" by Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Mike Hooper.

After 11 days of action across 17 sports, the event came to a close at Hampden Park on Sunday evening, with hosts Scotland finishing fourth overall with a record haul of 19 golds and a best-ever tally of 53 medals.
England topped the medal table for the first time in 28 years, Wales surpassed their target of 27 and Northern Ireland reaped their largest tally since the Games was last in Scotland in 1986.
The Isle of Man had a silver to celebrate thanks to cyclist Peter Kennaugh's efforts in the points race, but Jersey and Guernsey failed to register.

Final medals table
	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1.	England	58	59	57	174
2.	Australia	49	42	46	137
3.	Canada	32	16	34	82
4.	Scotland	19	15	19	53
5.	India	15	30	19	64
12.	Wales	5	11	20	36
17.	Northern Ireland	2	3	7	12
27.	Isle of Man	0	1	0	1

It is the third time in their 84-year existence that the Games have been staged in Scotland - after Edinburgh in 1970 and 1986 - and chief executive Hooper maintains they have been the best.
"In my view, they are the standout Games in the history of the movement," said the New Zealander of the 20th edition.
"The way in which the people of Scotland and Glasgow have embraced the Games right from the get-go has been incredible."
After an underwhelming staging in Delhi four years ago, and the withdrawals of a succession of big names in the build-up to Glasgow, there had been concerns over whether such success would be forthcoming.

Fragapane makes it four golds

But all the events have been well attended and, for the most part, the weather has also been favourable, as a new generation of athletes have taken their chance to impact on the public consciousness.
Botswana's Nijel Amos beat world record holder and Olympic champion David Rudisha in the 800m; Scotland's Ross Murdoch stunned poster boy and compatriot Michael Jamieson to take gold in the 200m breaststroke; English 16-year-old Claudia Fragapane claimed four gymnastics golds and 13-year-old Erraid Davies' took a swimming bronze for Scotland.
Scottish postman Charlie Flynn's response to winning lightweight boxing gold made him a cult figure, as did Lynsey Sharp's gutsy 800m silver just hours after being hooked up to a drip in the village hospital.
Rhythmic gymnast Frankie Jones ended her career by winning six gymnastics medals for Wales and the hosts' flag-bearer Euan Burton concluded his career with judo gold minutes after English wife Gemma Gibbons claimed silver.
But the big names who did appear delivered too.

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Usain Bolt anchored Jamaica to 4x100m relay gold to make everyone forget about claims he had been disparaging about the Games; South African swimmer Chad Le Clos won a record-equalling seven medals; Northern Ireland's Olympic gold medallist Paddy Barnes made history by retaining his light-flyweight title and England's Nicola Adams claimed the first ever women's boxing gold; England's Tom Daley took 10m platform diving gold; and David Weir romped to his first Commonwealth title in the men's T54 1500m.
That was one of 12 English Para-sport medals - from a tally of 174 - with Scottish athletes claiming seven from a total of 53 and their Welsh counterparts three from 36.
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson has praised the programme, but the Welsh 11-time Paralympic gold medallist says some Commonwealth nations still "need to do more" before the 21st Games in Australia's Gold Coast four years from now.
Of the 17 sports on the Glasgow schedule, judo will be absent in 2018. That means 13 medallists from both England and Scotland, two from Wales and one from Northern Ireland will not get the chance to emulate their successes.
Instead, the home nations' basketball players will get their chance to shine.

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Whether judo will return for 2022 is unclear. So, too, is the venue for those Games, with Canadian city Edmonton and South African city Durban both bidding to host the event.
"The entire executive board of the Commonwealth Games Federation have been delighted with the Glasgow Games," added Hooper. "They are all very excited about the future of the movement going forward to Gold Coast [in 2018] and then beyond."
What effect the events of the past 11 days will have on Glasgow and Scotland will not be clear for some time either.

 

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Glasgow 2014: David Weir powers to his first Commonwealth gold

Six-time Paralympic champion David Weir put in a majestic display to win his first Commonwealth Games gold medal in the men's T54 1500m.

The Englishman, 35, powered clear on the back straight to win in three minutes 21.67 seconds.
Silver went to Australia's Kurt Fearnley (3:23.08) with Canada's Alex Dupont (3:23.62) taking bronze.
Earlier, England's Jade Jones won her first senior medal with bronze in the women's T54 1500m.
The 18-year-old, who is mentored by Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, raced smartly in the tricky conditions.
She chased eventual winner Angie Ballard of Australia and runner-up Diane Roy of Canada over the final lap and held on comfortably for bronze.

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Nijel Amos beats David Rudisha to 800m gold

Glasgow 2014: Nijel Amos beats David Rudisha to 800m gold

Olympic 800m champion and world record holder David Rudisha was dethroned by his young rival Nijel Amos as the 20-year-old took the Commonwealth title in style.

Amos, who won silver in London in the greatest 800m race in history, kicked hard down the home straight to overtake Rudisha and cross the line with his arms outstretched in celebration.
Rudisha as always went to the front at 150m and tried to control the race from there, just as he had in setting that phenomenal record in 2012.

But, after a 2013 wrecked by a knee injury and a summer where he has been chasing fitness as well as his rivals, he could not take it out fast enough. He was powerless as Botswana's Amos accelerated past him with 50m to go to take gold in one minute 45.18 seconds.

Rudisha's 1:45.48 won him silver with Amos's South African training partner Andre Olivier taking bronze, Scotland's Guy Learmonth running a brilliant personal best of 1:46.69 for sixth and England's Michael Rimmer, after an injury-ravaged season, two hundredths of a second further back in seventh.
The 25-year-old Rudisha had gone through 400m in 52.7 seconds, more than three seconds down on his split from the Olympic final.
And it was that comparative lack of gas that allowed Amos, his country's flag-bearer at the opening ceremony, to come through the traffic down the finishing straight to repeat his victory at the Monaco Diamond League.

News: BBC

 

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