As part of Team Scotland’s countdown to the Bahamas 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games in July, we will be featuring each of the seven sports in which Scottish athletes will be competing.

Next up in our Sport Focus is Swimming which, grouped along with Diving and Synchronised Swimming as Aquatics, is Team Scotland’s most successful sport at both Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games.  Swimming is a core sport at the Youth Games and must be included every time the Games are held. Diving is an optional sport and has not yet been contested at Youth Games level.

Team Scotland swimmers at the Youth Games have provided, not just an impressive medal tally of 67 across the five previous editions, but also a fantastic track record of swimmers progressing onto success in the senior ranks. Hannah Miley, Robbie Renwick, Craig Benson, Todd Cooper and Kirsty Balfour, to name just a few, began their career with Team Scotland at the Commonwealth Youth Games before going on to Commonwealth Games and Olympic success as seniors.

Look out for all things Swimming on the Team Scotland website and social media channels over the coming week as we highlight the sport through news articles, interviews and a wealth of Swimming facts and figures. Search for #CYGSportFocus on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Find out more about Swimming at the Commonwealth Youth Games, including the competition format, rules and equipment on our dedicated Swimming page.

Team Scotland 2017

Team Scotland will be represented by eight swimmers at Bahamas 2017, five of whom will also represent Great Britain at this week’s European Junior Championships in Israel (28 June-2 July). The team includes multiple Scottish age-group record holder Scott McLay, who took a trio of medals at the 2017 British Junior Championships, including gold in the 50m Backstroke. He is joined by fellow British Junior Championship medallists Emma Harvey and Thomas Beeley, plus City of Glasgow’s Anna Fleming who holds an incredible 15 Scottish Age Group records. At 15 years old, Roisin Ramsay is Team Scotland’s youngest athlete making the trip to the Bahamas, with Isabel Jones, Luke Robins and Sophie Smith completing the line up.

Find out more about the athletes representing Team Scotland in the Bahamas in their Athlete Profiles.

Team Scotland will compete in Athletics, Beach Volleyball, Boxing, Cycling, Judo, Swimming and Tennis at the Bahamas 2017 Youth Games which take place in Nassau from 18-23 July.

You can show your support by uploading photos and messages on our Supporters Page and give Team Scotland’s athletes a boost as they prepare for one of the biggest competitions of their career to date!

The Commonwealth Youth Games

The Commonwealth Youth Games concept was created by Scotland as a development opportunity to give athletes under 18 years of age an international multi-sport Games experience. It aims to bridge the gap between young athletes competing in their own sports specific events and the often challenging first experience of a senior Commonwealth Games.

The first Youth Games were held in Edinburgh in 2000 as part of Scotland’s Millennium celebrations. Athletes from 14 countries competed in Edinburgh and the event quickly proved to be a great success. The Youth Games now attracts entries from all 70 nations and territories of the Commonwealth and has been the introduction to multi-sport Games for a host of international stars.

Find out more about the Commonwealth Youth Games and Team Scotland’s past success in our Youth Games section.