Hansard

I begin my contribution to the debate by saying, “Thank you, Glasgow.” I thank all those who were involved in the games, which were a success because of those who bid, those who organised, those who volunteered—the host city volunteers and the Clyde-siders—the coaches and the hundreds of thousands who came to support the athletes.

The games were a success because of the athletes who came from all round the globe to compete here in Scotland. They were a success because of our fascination with those who dedicate time, blood, sweat, tears and—often—cash to being the best that they can be in their chosen sports.

I know that we will all have our own personal memories and stories from the games. As someone who has been involved in sport since her earliest years, I attended a few events, which really were very special. George Adam may be slightly disturbed to learn that I was one of the very lucky ones in the ballot who was fortunate to be able to attend several events. If I had been organised, I might have stayed in the city, but I would have had to book accommodation before it was all booked up. However, if I had stayed in the city, I would have missed some of the memorable travel moments that Sandra White touched on.

Steve Montgomery, who is the managing director of ScotRail, could regularly be found mingling with the Glasgow Central rail queue—it was quite a queue at times, but a really well-managed and good-tempered one—offering advice on the most sensible way to get back to Edinburgh on a given evening. I did not see him there only once or twice. Taking his advice, I chose Glasgow Central rather than Queen Street station as a departure point, which meant that I enjoyed the deadpan delivery of the cross-country train guard who solemnly announced, as a prelude to other catering news, “There is no rooftop garden on this train.” There was also the Mount Florida station announcer who updated the hundreds returning from Hampden Park on the latest medal tally and his take on national characteristics. I do not think that I can share that with members, but he could certainly give a few Edinburgh fringe stars a lesson in timing and delivery.

Glasgow embraced the games and, as the days passed, the feeling of pride and enjoyment in what the city and its people added to the spectacle simply grew. I was privileged to attend hockey, netball, track cycling and athletics. The warmth, humour and desire to help visitors and spectators get to where they needed to be were palpable. Those who delivered the games had clearly learned much from the London blueprint; the games there were a huge success, as were Glasgow’s.

Glasgow 2014 brought together people from around the globe in a way that only sport can. Spectators cheered on their own countryfolk, but the applause from the crowd for each and every athlete and their endeavour is testament to the generous and knowledgeable audience that Glasgow attracted. The crowd defied definition. From babes in arms to our oldest citizens, folks of all shapes, sizes, nationalities and walks of life cheered every individual, regardless of outcome or level of celebrity.

I was really chuffed by Eilidh Child’s silver; Mark Dry’s bronze; Lynsey Sharp’s determination to achieve; Guy Learmonth’s personal best in the 800m final, which was a real highlight; Eilish McColgan’s gutsy run; Beth Potter’s 10,000m personal best; and Emily Dudgeon, who narrowly missed out on the 800m final after a fantastic performance. There were far too many great performances to mention them all. However, medals and records aside, it is the endeavour of those who performed that matters, including those who may have to wait until next time and those who will have to go back to the drawing board. That is what makes the games what they are, and what makes them so special.

I have no doubt that many people, young and old, will be inspired to follow in the footsteps of those they cheered on; there were sports for all ages and inclinations on show. Jo Pavey’s 5,000m bronze medal in her fifth decade, and months after giving birth will spur on many a middle-aged runner, and seeing bowls being played by rising youngsters will have an impact, too.

There are questions posed by the games, however. How can our part-time netball and hockey players compete with full-time professional athletes? Which sports should receive more funding? We need to look even more closely at formal links between our top coaches and our earliest educators in schools. Physical education and games are not the same thing, and we need to invest in physical literacy for our young people, because that will pay dividends in terms of their long-term health and wellbeing, self-confidence and enjoyment of sport.

The challenge now is to deliver a truly meaningful legacy. Part of that legacy is visible: it is the velodrome, the rest of the Emirates arena and the housing, with its district heating scheme.

However, it is not just about facilities in Glasgow: this is a nationwide issue. Let us ensure that the facilities are properly maintained, that we proudly take care of them and that we learn lessons from what happened at Meadowbank in Edinburgh. Bob Doris was right to highlight community sports delivery as an important model. The other part of the challenge is to ensure that those who would like to use the facilities have access to them, that they are affordable, that we have enough coaches in place and that no one is priced out of a more active lifestyle. Let us look at good practice, such as Scottish Athletics’ club together programme, which is about partnership and building a meaningful legacy from the grass roots up.

The games do not take place in a vacuum. The world watched, and Scotland’s message of equality was clear and heartfelt. The inclusion of para-sport made the games even better. Pride house played an important role, and I was proud to be a patron. The impact of Pride house, which was in a central location, cannot be overstated and I thank and congratulate the board, the volunteers and all those who supported this public sign of our support for the lesbian, gay and bisexual community. There is recognition by many prominent campaigners and academics that the games have helped to elevate the issue of public support for gay equality.