London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 04, 2026

Four golds in under four hours for stunning Scots

Four golds in under four hours for stunning Scots

Scotland claimed an astonishing four gold medals - and six in total - during less than four hours of incredible Commonwealth Games drama in Birmingham on Wednesday.

Para-bowlers Pauline Wilson and Rosemary Lenton started the rush, the latter becoming Scotland's oldest gold medallist at the age of 72.

Then, Sarah Adlington retained her +78kg judo title and became Scotland's first ever double judo gold medallist, before swimmer Duncan Scott added his second gold of these Games.

And Eilish McColgan produced the most remarkable result of all to rampage to victory in the 10,000m and match her mother Liz's success in 1986 and 1990. And just for good measure, she did it in a Games record with her maw watching trackside.

Those coruscating few hours were bookended by Adlington's team-mate Rachel Tytler taking bronze in the -78kg category, and Scott joining Craig McNally, Ross Murdoch - in the last races of their career - and Evan Jones to claim third in the 4 x 100m medley relay.

It also added an enormous dollop of polish to Scotland's standing. Medals have been surprisingly bountiful, but golds vexingly rare. Not any more. The nine won in Goal Coast four years ago are now in significant danger of being surpassed.

The tally now stands at 32 in total, with seven gold, eight silver and 17 bronze just past the halfway point, with another three bronzes - at least - secured by the boxers earlier on Wednesday.

Reese Lynch, Sam Hickey and Sean Lazzerini all won their quarter-finals in Birmingham, and will watch team-mates Lennon Mulligan, Matthew McHale and Tyler Jolly try to do the same on Thursday.


'In a couple of weeks I'm 73...'


Lenton and Wilson, with a combined age of 130, were perhaps the most gladdening of the successes, though, on an enthralling day.

The duo didn't just beat their Australian opponents, they overwhelmed them 17-5 in a dominant display, having seen off England in their semi-final. It matched the achievement of their male pairs counterparts.

"I'd never thought we'd be going home with a gold medal," Lenton told BBC Scotland. "I hoped and prayed we would. When it really mattered - the semi-finals and finals - we really turned it on, both of us.

"In a couple of weeks' time, I will be 73, but records are there to be broken and somebody will break that."

Scott is your man for that kind of business. The swimmer has not only ransacked 78-year-old Alister Allan's record of 10 Commonwealth Games medals this week and pushed the mark out to 13, but he has also now stripped the shooter of the consolation that he still had won more golds.

The Olympic medallist now taken gold in the 200m freestyle and medley, as well as bronze 400m medley, 100m free, 4 x 200m freestyle and 4 x 100m medley relay, all in the past five days. And he took one of those off to rest.

"I'm absolutely exhausted," the 25-year-old told BBC Sport Scotland. "I was really hurting and I'm really glad that I'm finished, to be honest.

"It's been a really long week and I just scraped the barrel there and the team helped me out. I'm just absolutely buzzing for the four of us, and the four that did the heat. It's been all of us coming together to get that bronze."

Given her recent difficulties with illness and injury - and the stacked nature of the 10,000m - it seemed a bronze might be the best McColgan could hope for. But the 31-year-old Dundonian is one of the most obdurate athletes on the circuit.

She led early and maintained her form throughout, before finding herself in a duel with Irine Cheptai with a lap to go.

The Kenyan surged ahead on the back straight but McColgan wasn't having any of her capers, digging in and rampaging past to record the biggest win of her career.

"I have never sprinted like that in my life and without the crowd I could never have done that," she told BBC Sport. "It was vibrating through my body.

"I couldn't have asked for anything more to have my family here. Your family know the ups and downs and this is my fourth attempt over four events and I have come sixth every time. You could see I wanted gold. To win it tonight was so special."

Mother Liz, a redoubtably presence at the best of times, stood emotionally beside her as she spoke.

"To witness your daughter win in the same event is incredible," she added. "She just ran the race I knew she was capable of running. I know how hard she works and it's fantastic it came together and she won."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Scottish Tech Company PureLifi Enters Administration With More Than 40 Job Losses
Scottish Government Names Alyn Smith Innovation and Education Minister
Green Party Co-Leader Zack Polanski to Contest By-Election for Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Palestine Action Activists Appeal Terrorism-Related Prison Sentences
PwC Report Highlights Persistent Regional Spending-Power Divide Across Britain
UK Names Hundreds of Employers for Minimum Wage Violations
UK Commits £400 Million to International Tropical Forest Fund
UK Extends £2 Bus Fare Cap Across England Through 2027
UK Warns Travellers as US-Iran Tensions Disrupt Middle East Security and Shipping
Andy Burnham Faces Kemi Badenoch in First Prime Minister’s Questions
Kemi Badenoch Names Andrew Griffith Shadow Chancellor in Conservative Reshuffle
UK Treasury and Markets Focus on Fiscal Headroom Ahead of Autumn Budget
UK Government Reverses Early Release Plans for Serious Violent and Sexual Offences
UK and France Review Border Cooperation After 48,000 Small-Boat Crossings Prevented
UK Growth Outlook Weakens as Inflation and Energy Costs Rise
Breeding Tropical Mosquitoes Discovered in East London
Sadiq Khan Agrees to Search of Digital Communications in Palantir Lawsuit
Scottish Protesters Call for Moratorium on AI Data Centre Expansion
Uber Drivers Bring London Class Action Over Algorithmic Management
Reform UK Accepts £4 Million Donation From Cryptocurrency Billionaire Pardoned by Trump
Justice Secretary Tightens Early Release Scheme to Exclude Manslaughter Offenders
Kemi Badenoch Reshuffles Conservative Team as Reform UK Pressure Grows
British Mortgage Rates Rise as Global Bond Sell-Off Pushes Up Borrowing Costs
UK Records Hottest Summer on Record in 2026
UK Government Urges Households to Stock Essential Supplies Ahead of Severe El Niño Risk
UK Prepares Targeted Sanctions Over Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Reform UK Faces Electoral and Police Scrutiny Over Foreign Donation Allegations
UK and France Expand Channel Migration Cooperation as Trade Tensions Surface
UK Marks Merchant Navy Day With Tribute to Civilian Seafarers
Burnham Pays Tribute to Two Police Officers Killed on Duty in Northern England
Booking.com Left Fake Downing Street Listing Online for Two Months, Which Says
Burnham and Macron to Review UK-France Cooperation on Channel Crossings
UK Business Confidence Improves Slightly but Investment Concerns Persist
Burnham Faces Pressure Over Future North Sea Oil and Gas Licences
Burnham Pushes Wider English Devolution Through ‘Number Ten North’
British Chambers of Commerce Raises 2026 UK Growth Forecast to 1%
Keir Starmer Resigns as Holborn and St Pancras MP, Triggering By-Election
UK Chancellor Faces Tighter Budget Headroom as Long-Term Borrowing Costs Rise
UK Government Weighs Thames Water Nationalisation as Financial Crisis Deepens
Prime Minister Andy Burnham Faces First Commons Questions Over Tax and Spending Plans
Eleven British Seafarers Receive Merchant Navy Medal
Which? Creates Fake 10 Downing Street Rental Listing to Expose Booking.com Vetting Weaknesses
BP Appoints New Chairman in Effort to Stabilise Leadership
Aberdeen Sells Hydrogen Bus Fleet at Heavy Loss After Green Transport Experiment
UK Records Hottest Summer on Record as Climate Change Intensifies Extreme Heat
Scotland Pledges to End Temporary Accommodation for Children and Build 111,000 Affordable Homes
DNO Agrees $396 Million Deal to Acquire Capricorn Energy
Uber and Wayve Launch UK’s First Supervised Autonomous Ride-Hailing Service in London
Britain Expected to Avoid New US Tariffs Targeting European Union
Middle East Conflict Pushes UK Energy Costs Higher and Revives Inflation Concerns
×