England’s extraordinary Commonwealth Games exodus has reached 11 in a serious blow to their medal hopes as track and field gets underway at Glasgow 2026.
Next month’s European championships and under-20 world championships made the event a hard sell for some athletes, with Olympic champions Keely Hodgkinson (England, 800m), Julien Alfred (Saint Lucia, 100m) and Letsile Tebogo (Botswana, 200m) notably bypassing the Games entirely.
But the exits ramped up in Glasgow for England and hosts Scotland, who lost Eilish McColgan — the face of Games promotional banners throughout the city — on day two.
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The reigning 10,000m champion, whose mother Liz also won the event twice, is recovering from a toe injury and only completed her first track session last week.
“Sadly, I won’t be competing at the Commonwealth Games! It won’t come as a huge surprise after almost 10 weeks off post-London Marathon with a toe injury,” McColgan wrote.
“The good news? I’m back running! The bad news? I’ve simply ran out of time to get myself (and my toe!) back into spikes… it turns out breaking your toe as a runner is pretty important.
“I’m at peace knowing I gave it absolutely everything to get back and compete at home in Scotland. But having only taken my first running steps two weeks ago, the clock was always against me! Instead, I’ll be in Glasgow all week cheering on the rest of Team Scotland.”
McColgan’s exit from the 10,000m has opened the door for Australian pair Rose Davies and Lauren Ryan to nab their first major medals — and the nation’s first in the event since 2002 — when the final takes place on Monday night (Tuesday 5am AEST) live and free on Seven and 7plus Sport.
Davies warmed up for the Commonwealth Games with a second-place finish behind middle-distance star Jess Hull in the 3000m at the London Diamond League earlier this month.
Elsewhere, the England squad has been ravaged ahead of the first day of track and field competition.
Olympic silver medallists Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Dina Asher-Smith and Matt Hudson-Smith were among nine English athletes to pull out on the day of the opening ceremony, and two more Olympic bronze medallists in Louie Hinchliffe and Charlie Dobson followed suit on Sunday local time.
Five athletes were called up as late replacements but England’s medal hopes undoubtedly took a hit with the high-profile exits — particularly in the relays, which Australia has targeted strongly in recent years.
Aussie star Hull, speaking before many of the withdrawals, said the onus is on athletes to breathe life into the Commonwealth Games now and into the future.
Hull insists she sees a bright future for an event that remains close to her heart, calling on fellow athletes to reinvigorate the Games.
“It’s about the athletes,” Olympic 1500m silver medallist Hull said.
“If they show up and perform and really show that they want to be there.
“That they’ve embraced this Commonwealth Games and prepared as well as they could to put on a show … they really cared and put their best foot forward.
“I really think that that’s going to help give a lifeline to the Commonwealth Games.
“If they (fans) can see that it means something to the athletes, it might just mean another (country) puts their hand up to bid for 2034.”
Glasgow’s pared-back schedule has no open-road events, such as the marathon, and there is no dedicated athletes’ village.
“It’s going to be a different Games,” said Hull, who completed a strong preparation with a dominant 3000m triumph at the London Diamond League event.
“It is a lot smaller, but at the same time I think we’re all pretty grateful that we have the opportunity to compete.
“I grew up watching the Commonwealth Games before the Olympics, so it means something.
“If you’ve decided that and you’ve got your heart set on it, it’s going to be just as good as any other Commonwealth Games.”
Australia’s world champion high jumper Nicola Olyslagers expects the level of competition to be high, even if the overall experience won’t be as “intense” for athletes.
“It’s a shame without the village, but we all want to go there because of the competition itself,” Olyslagers told AAP.
“It’s still amazing and I think it’s still something that should be backed for the future because it helps us, and Australians really rise to the occasion.”
Olyslagers burst onto the international scene as a 21-year-old when she won bronze at the 2018 Games on the Gold Coast, and said the event remains a valuable development platform.
“The Commonwealth Games was a starting point for me with understanding what it means to compete for a team and to have a bit of pressure,” Olyslagers said.
“It’s such a great event to learn about the team and to represent your nation alongside all these other sports.
“It really helps you learn how to shine when maybe you’re not the best in the world, but you are (up against) some of the best.”
— with AAP
