Team Scotland and JudoScotland have confirmed that 31 year James Austin has been forced to withdraw from the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games in the Judo -100kg weight category due to a knee injury.
The Edinburgh based judoka said: “I’m truly gutted to be missing out on the Games. I tried to work through the injury and would like to thank everyone at JudoScotland for supporting me with this. I want to say good luck to the team, and I hope to be there cheering them all on to medals.”
Austin will be replaced by James Millar (32), a three-time British Champion who brings a wealth of experience to Team Scotland. James is coached by JudoScotland National Coach and fellow Team Scotland athlete Euan Burton at the national centre at Ratho in Edinburgh.
Jon Doig, Team Scotland Chef de Mission said: “It is hugely disappointing to lose James Austin so close to the Games, and we wish him a very speedy recovery.
“The thoughts of the Team are with him as we all know how much this meant to him. The health of our athletes is our priority in situations such as this and although he won’t be competing, his continued support for the Team will be welcomed by all athletes as they take to the tatami from 24 July.”
James Millar will join his fellow judoka with immediate effect in their final preparations.
You can follow James on Twitter @Millar_Judo
Photo credit: Getty Images
Team Scotland wrestlers have been taking to the mats together as they get ready to grapple with success at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. All 14 wrestlers have been enjoying a quality block of final training at the Team Scotland Preparation Camp held at the University of Stirling.
Half of the team are set to make their Commonwealth debut when they step onto the mats at the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC) from Tuesday 29 July to Thursday 31 July, whilst the other half of the team bring a wealth of experience, including Donna and Fiona Robertson.
The twin sisters will both compete in the 48kg weight category at their second consecutive Commonwealth Games as wrestlers, having each previously won Commonwealth Judo medals.
“We’re all very excited. The preparation at Stirling has been excellent and the whole team is raring to go,” said Donna, who won Judo Bronze at the 1990 Auckland Games.
“The Commonwealth Games brings some of the strongest wrestling nations in the world together and we know we will need to fight out of our skin, but with the crowd behind us we will go for that medal,” added Fiona, who replicated her sister’s achievement at the Manchester 2002 Commonwealth Games.
Alongside the mat time with Team Scotland Wrestling Coach Volodymyr Gladkov, the wrestlers have access to support from Team doctors, nutritionists and physiotherapists, as well as specially prepared meals.
One athlete for whom food is high in his thoughts is Commonwealth debutant Brian Harper, who will compete in the 57kg weight category.
He said: “Normally before you go to a tournament, you want to be sitting above your weight. I used to compete at 55kg then they changed the weight categories. At that time I only weighed 54kg, so I was giving away weight to opponents. Now I’ve had to put on more, which was a struggle at first, but finally I made it.”
The 17-year-old is one of four wrestlers from the same Tullibody Club to make the Team and he and his Tullibody team-mates are already enjoying the experience.
“The experience in Stirling, I feel part of the Team,” added Brian. “We all talk away. You get to socialise with other people from different sports and learn about their sports. I hope to go to the next Commonwealth Games in Australia too, but right now I’m fully focused on competing in Glasgow.”
Photo credit: Commonwealth Games Scotland
Team Scotland Triathletes are enjoying home comforts as they complete their final Commonwealth preparations. The five-strong squad are undergoing a full schedule of swimming, cycling and running at the Team Scotland Preparation Camp being held at the University of Stirling.
And it’s a home-from-home for three of the squad, Marc Austin, Grant Sheldon and Natalie Milne all currently Stirling students, whilst David McNamee completed an Accountancy degree there in 2011.
Leeds-based Triathlete Seonaid Thompson will join up this week as the coaches, based at triathlonscotland’s Performance Centre on campus, prepare their charges for the Men’s Individual Triathlon on Thursday 24 July and an exciting Mixed Team Relay event two days later.
The individual event starts with a 1500m open water swim before a 40km cycle and a 10km run. The Mixed Team Triathlon Relay is a fast-paced tag-team event which sees two men and two women from each country swim 250m, cycle 6.6km and run 1.6km.
Strathclyde Park will play host to both Triathlon events and for Sheldon, who hails from Hamilton, he can’t wait to compete in his home city. He said: “I took my last semester out of studies to focus on qualifying for the Games and I’m delighted to make it. We’re training really hard – the average day is a morning swim for two hours then after a bit of breakfast we get out on the bike for a few more hours then a run session in the evening. It can be quite hectic, but I enjoy it.”
McNamee won the 2011 World U23 Triathlon Championship Silver medal during his time at Stirling and the 26-year-old has since steadily risen up the rankings. He enjoyed three top ten finishes in the 2013 World Triathlon Series before suffering a serious arm injury, but is now back to full fitness and enjoying the challenge that lies ahead.
“It’s going to be a tough competition with the Brownlee brothers – the Olympic Gold and Bronze medallists – on the start line,” said McNamee, who is part of a coaching group which includes World No.4 ranked Richard Murray of South Africa. “For me, behind the Brownlees there are six of us fighting it out and in triathlon anything can happen so we’ll see on the day.
“The coaching group has been really successful and I’m enjoying the new challenge. It’s good to be surrounded by world class athletes as it pushes you on to keep improving. Having come back from surgery in February, I’m even more determined to get on the podium. The strength has come back in my arm and I was sixth at the European Championships last month so I’m in good shape. There’s time now to do some more training and I’m going into Glasgow even fitter and confident of getting a good result.”
Confidence is high throughout the Triathlon team, with Natalie recording an impressive fourth place finish at the Jenson Button Triathlon on Saturday (12 July).
Photo credit: Jeff Holmes
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The atmosphere was electric in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome for the fourth and final day of the Track Cycling competition. Louise Haston and Aileen McGylnn claimed their second Silver of the Games, Katie Archibald took Bronze in the Points Race and, to top it off, there were two marriage proposals.
In the Women’s Para-Cycling 1,000m Time Trial B Tandem it was clear to see that World class competition was on offer, with times falling with every ride. First up for Scotland were Laura Cluxton and Fiona Duncan, setting a time of 1.12.132. Next up for Scotland were Sprint Silver medallists McGlynn and Haston who put in an incredible ride, crossing the line with a time of 1.10.543, a new personal best.
Finally, Team England’s Sprint Gold medallists were up and crossed the line in 1.08.187, putting the Scottish duo into second, claiming their second Silver of the Games with Australia’s Brandie O’Connor and Breanna Hargrave taking Bronze.
“It’s really, really good. We really wanted to win this one,” said Haston. “I’ve been saying for a while that ideally I’d like to win this but two Silver Commonwealth medals is absolutely brilliant. Sophie and Helen were absolutely fantastic, and that was a cracking ride, so well done to them.
“For me it’s the biggest competition of my career and I couldn’t have asked for more – two Silver medals- so I’m over the moon.”
McGlynn continued:
“The aim was to go as hard as I could for the first 500m and try to hold on, so I think we did that. I’m happy with our ride, I didn’t expect them to go as fast, so hats off to them, they did a phenomenal ride.
“I’m just happy to come away with a Commonwealth Games medal to be honest, we always aim for a Gold medal but the English girls are at the top of their game. The competition here was the best in the world… so for us to come away with the silver medal we’re really delighted.”
Scots Laura Cluxton and Fiona Duncan placed 5th.
After a thrilling Tandem race it was the turn of Katie Archibald, Eileen Roe and Charline Joiner to get on the track in the Women’s 25km Points Race. Roe, Joiner and Archibald showed a fantastic display of team work to put Archibald in the right position for the final lap. As the bell rang out the leaders sprinted to the finish.
Archibald pipped Olympian Laura Trott to the post to take the five points, enough to give her the Bronze. Trott took three points, to give her the lead and take Gold with Welsh rider Elinor Barker claiming Silver, making it an all British line up on the podium.
“It’s that glorious moment when you cross the finish line, you’ve got about 10 minutes of just euphoria when you can’t feel anything, said Katie, “and that felt fantastic.”
An exhausted Archibald summed up what it took to push herself so hard:
“It’s an unbelievable pain. I remember my first Scottish National Points Race and I basically fell off my bike at the end. I had this kind of awakening moment where I remember this is what it feels like to empty yourself and it’s only very special occasions; that was one of them.
“That final sprint, it’s everything and beyond and it’s just knowing that, even if you think you’re clear, you go right past that finish line and that’s what the crowd allows really.”
In the Men’s 20km Scratch Race Qualifications all three Scottish riders, Evan Oliphant, Mark Stewart and Delhi Bronze medallist James McCallum made the final with the youngest member of Scotland’s cycling team, 18 year old Mark Stewart, riding to a remarkable sixth place at the end of the 80 lap race.
There were no Scottish riders present in the Keirin major final having all missed out on top three placings in the earlier second round. In the minor final Scottish riders Chris Pritchard and John Paul placed 9th and 11th respectively.
After his race, in a surprising turn of events, Scottish Rider Chris Pritchard got down on one knee and proposed to his long term girlfriend Amanda Ball. Later that evening Aileen McGlynn’s partner Graeme Hitchcliffe also popped the question… and they both said yes!
Team Scotland’s Cycling tally now stands at two Golds, two Silvers, a Bronze and two diamond rings.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
With less than 2 week to go until the XX Commonwealth Games, the 10 selected Team Scotland badminton players have been intensively training in the heart of Glasgow ahead of moving into the Athlete’s Village in just over a week’s time.
It’s been a demanding year for the players, who have gone through an intensive selection period leading up to the Games. In order to achieve selection, athletes had to achieve an event-specific Badminton World Federation (BWF) world ranking placing for at least four weeks, one week of which had to be in 2014.
With six Badminton Gold medals on offer over the 11 days of competition Caitlin Pringle and Rebekka Findlay, who is in line for her Scotland senior international debut in the team event, lets us know how preparations have been going.
Caitlin Pringle said: “Over the last little while we have been training at the Glasgow school of Sport, it’s a great venue and really close to the Athlete’s Village we are moving into in a week or so. Now it’s really about upping the intensity of our training and making sure we are games ready.
“We are now all able to train with our partners, as quite a lot of the others don’t always train here in Glasgow; it’s great to really get to know everyone, we have really bonded as a team and are working well together.”
Findlay added: “Both Caitlin and I have only been training and playing together for a season. At the start of this season I wouldn’t have imagined making the Commonwealth Games Team, we didn’t even have a World ranking!”
“We were put together last summer, Caitlin called me while I was away on holiday and told me were off to Bulgaria for our first competition. At this point we were ranked around 700th in the world and in the short space of time we have had, we have managed to bring this down and get into the top 90 in the world, which we are really proud of. It’s taken a lot of hard work and travelling but we have done it together.”
Looking ahead to the Commonwealth Games Pringle said: “We experienced a home crowd at the Scottish International in November and it was a phenomenal experience, I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like in the arena.”
“It’s so exciting but also nerve-raking at the same time as I don’t know what to expect. I am really looking forward to that home crowd cheer as soon as we walk out, knowing that support is their behind you, allows us to then concentrate on our game.”
Selected athletes will compete at the Emirates Arena in the Team Events from 24 July. This event comprises a group stage, followed by knockout matches, with each team needing three wins to be successful from the five singles and doubles disciplines. From 29 Jul, players will then compete in an individual knockout competition for Men’s and Women’s Singles and Doubles and in the Mixed Doubles events.
Photo credit: Commonwealth Games Scotland
Team Scotland Rugby 7s team have spent this week at the University of Stirling training hard ahead of their big weekend of competition at Ibrox Stadium on the 26th and 27th July.
The 12-man squad are raring to go, and to ensure they have some all-important match practice ahead of Glasgow 2014, they are off to London in the morning (Saturday) to take part in ‘Sevens and the City’ at Allianz Park. The one-day tournament will see them take on Germany, Wailers and Wales in the group stages before the move onto a cross-over match.
Training on the scenic pitches in Stirling today, the team were upbeat and training at high intensity with obvious enthusiasm ahead of the big event in just over two weeks time.
They took time out after training to speak to a hoard of media who joined the session to see the team in action and the afternoon was a well-deserved break with a trip into town on the cards for a few of the players.
The team return to Team Camp early next week before moving into the village for their final countdown.
Mark Bennett said: “This is completely different to our usual rugby competitions and training. Being around other teams and athletes and speaking to them about their training and plans, it’s really interesting. Having everyone together at Team Camp last weekend was great. I know a few of the other athletes but I am looking forward to getting to know a lot more.”
James Eddie: “There is a real feeling of the ’17 sports, 1 team’ now that we have had our Team Camp and are training at the preparation camp. I never thought I’d compete at a Commonwealth Games until the start of this year and now that it is here, I am really excited and proud to be part of Team Scotland. We really hope that our performance in Glasgow will raise the profile of rugby 7s even more and attract more fans to the sport. Sevens is a really exciting version of the sport so it will be exciting for everyone who comes to support us.” (James Eddie, Rugby 7s)
Colin Shaw: “Training has been going very well. It has been tough and very intense the last few days with Friday being a low-key session as we are traveling to London tomorrow. The incoming players have seamlessly slotted into the sevens game and as a squad we are very confident going into this weekend and into the games in Glasgow. Most of the squad have a good amount of sevens experience under their belt so that is also a big positive, including four of us who have experience to draw on from the previous Games in Delhi which is invaluable.”
Photo credit: Jeff Holmes
Team Scotland are through to the quarter-finals of the Mixed Team Event in badminton after a decisive 5-0 victory over New Zealand in their final group game.
Experienced pair Imogen Bankier and Robert Blair had given Scotland a flying start with a 2-0 success over Oliver and Susannah Leydon-Davis by 21-8 and 21-10 and Glaswegian Kieran Merrilees then followed that up with an individual 2-0 win over Joe Wu against a New Zealand side seeded sixth. Scotland are ranked fifth.
Kirsty Gilmour had to work really hard to dig out a 2-0 success against belligerent Kiwi, Michelle Chan.
With the overall success already secure, Blair and Paul van Rietvelde then wrapped up another 2-0 victory over Oliver Leydon-Davis and Kevin Dennerly-Minturn.
And, finally, Gilmour and Bankier were far too strong for the out-classed Anna Rankin and Madeleine Stapleton for an overall 5-0 score-line for Scotland – for the third time in the group.
Gilmour said, “I lost my voice shouting for the guys in the opening two matches and then the second game against Michelle was pretty tight (23-21).I knew what I wanted to do but at times I didn’t quite execute it the right way. I’ve learned a lot from that one.
“We’re not resting on our laurels in any way and we know now we need to step up a level in the quarter-finals. We will face a higher ranked opponent but we’ve all had individual success against some of the players from the other teams, so we won’t fear anyone.
“The atmosphere in the Emirates was amazing but I still feel it can be even louder! That’s the group games taken care of for the Mixed Team Event so I expect it will rise a notch or two in the knockouts.”
For Blair, 33, competing for Scotland in Scotland at the Commonwealth Games is a slightly novel experience after featuring for England in Manchester and Melbourne, where he picked up Bronze and Silver medals.
“It feels good playing for Scotland here, said the Edinburgh-born player who is based in Longniddry.
“It is still the same badminton tournament, with the same nations, as I am used to for a Commonwealth Games. But there’s a strong sense of pride for me this time – this is my country.
“I am one of the more experienced ones now in the squad so you just try and play your best and see if they can take encouragement from that. It is exciting for Team Scotland as a whole and we saw Hannah Miley come back into the Village late on Thursday night. It is a massive lift for everyone when you see athletes with medals and the feel-good factor spreads.”
Their three impressive 5-0 successes in Group C against the Seychelles, Guernsey and New Zealand take the Scots into the last eight – and a Saturday evening quarter-final at the Emirates.
The Loch Ness Monster is ready and waiting to welcome 6,500 athletes and officials to the place they’ll call home during the Commonwealth Games.
The imposing sculpture – which now has pride of place outdoors in the heart of the Athletes’ Village – was commissioned by Glasgow 2014 and crafted by Speyside sculptor Stuart Murdoch.
And the monster, who will greet athletes from 71 different nations and territories, is every inch as Scottish as the legend of ‘Nessie’ itself. Stuart has used Caithness Stone; Scots Elm; grey stone from the North-east of Scotland and Clashach Sandstone from Moray to create the 3metre high and 9metre long sculpture.
The work of art, which incorporates a bench, is intended to create a centerpiece for the Village in Dalmarnock.
Sculptor Stuart Murdoch said:
“I was honoured to be asked to work with Glasgow 2014 and to produce this sculpture. The Loch Ness Monster is recognised globally as an icon of this country and in this work I wanted to represent the nation’s mythology, creativity, ancient history, as well as to highlight the grit and determination shown by all the Commonwealth athletes.
“It is a beast that has inspired our people since before the first written word. I hope it inspires all the athletes in the village.”
Although known across the globe as the Loch Ness Monster, the creature is also known locally by its Gaelic name “Each Uisge” or “water horse”. Stuart has inscribed this name on parts of the sculpture in “Ogham Script”, the ‘alphabet’ of the Pictish people.
Glasgow 2014 Chief Executive, David Grevemberg, said:
“The Loch Ness Monster is such a well-known Scottish legend and this striking sculpture will be part of a warm Scottish welcome for the athletes. It not only reflects part of Scotland’s heritage but also showcases to an international audience some of the best of the country’s natural materials.”
Glasgow 2014 Head of Village Operations, Tony Sainsbury, said:
“The monster sculpture is a fantastic addition to the Village representing as it does Scottish folklore. Nessie follows in the tradition of sculptures in recent Athletes’ Villages and it is sure to become the photo, selfie and upload hit of our Village.”
The Athletes’ Village is right on the doorstep of Celtic Park, the venue for the Opening Ceremony of the Games, and alongside the new Emirates Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.
It covers the same area as London 2012 (approximately 35 hectares), but with 700 lower rise homes in a mixture of styles from detached to semi-detached, terraced and two seven-storey apartment blocks.
It also features a temporary 2,000-seat, 24-hour dining hall and gym, a medical facility, a retail zone and a recreational space.
Police Scotland has confirmed that the bowls stolen this week from Paul Foster, one of Team Scotland’s leading bowlers, have been recovered today.
The three bowls, which Foster has seen and confirms are his, are now being checked by police forensics before being returned to him.
“This is a huge relief for me,” said the Troon 41-year-old, a Gold medallist in the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games.
“I’ve have seen the bowls, they is no doubt they are mine and at first glance they appear to be undamaged.
“I would like to thank the police, the media, the public and everyone who has helped the police in the campaign to find them in such a short space of time.”
Detectives in Ayrshire are appealing for information following the theft of lawn bowls in Troon on Monday 7 July 2014.
Photo credit: Getty Images