commonwealth games.

[aprilanne]

hi i was just sitting here thinking that these commonwealth games are not much more than the home nation,s competing against each other and are giving the athletes the impression they are world class .i mean no america in athletics .no america /russia in gymnastics .sorry but i think its not been great .and i am scottish .and we should not be having a rebel song masking as a national anthem .great song at new year but not on when english competetor standing beside them .

[lecherrs]

April and Broken...

RE I would walk: A tad insensitive maybe, but that song was the theme of the games, and played / sung at every event I went to. That includes the opening ceremony and seven other events during the two weeks. One could also argue that not including it at that particular event, when it had been played at every other was also wrong and insensitive because then it is making a point / making it different.

I agree that not all of the competitors have been world class. We went to lots of the gymnastics, and some of the countries in the qualifiers were awful. One girl had pretty much the same beam routine as my ten year old daughter. Needless to say she didn't get through!

However, other parts if it were world class. At the gymnastics they were saying to reach the finals at the Olympics or World Championships the male athletes would need a score of 15. At the rings (when they said this) all the medal winners had scores over 15. They'd be up there in the world championships too.

So no, it's not got everyone from the world, but that's good. It allows the athletes to try new stuff, to compete and try out new routines. Next year's world championships for gymnastics will be the qualifiers for the next Olympics, so countries cannot afford to get that wrong. The Commonwealth Games gives a great opportunity for athletes to compete new stuff / get back to fitness etc etc and that is valuable in its own right too.

[HesterShaw]

OP, this is why the Commonwealths are worth celebrating and worth keeping. These youngsters have been given the chance of a big meet, a couple of years prior to Rio, and it should stand them in good stead.

[aprilanne]

BROKENHEARTED55A .yes it was stupid to say the least .

[Shenanagins]

Yabu it is not the Olympics and never will be.

Granted there are some sports which have winners who would struggle to make the Olympics but in others the big players are there, for example cycling, swimming (with the exception of Phelps and Locke (sp)), long distance running, 800 metres to name a few off the top of my head.

It also allows athletes to experience a global multi-disciplinary competition, become visible (good for funding) which can be vital preparation for competing at the olympics, something Denise Lewis cited.

Finally these games can hopefully continue to build on the London 2012 legacy to inspire a nation.

[iismum]

I Vow To Thee My Country is also about Britain - hardly any songs about England! I personally would object very strongly to it being used for the English anthem - I know it's very moving but it embodies the whole 'dulce et decoram est' spirit - i.e., what a great honour to die for your country, not what a hideous waste of young life.

I think England should just get someone to write an anthem like Ireland did for rugby. Ireland's Call is a great anthem - it's easy to sing to, upbeat and proudly Irish without being political or lording it over / fighting against any other nation.

So glad England didn't go with Land of Hope and Glory in the Commonwealth. The being about Britain rather than England is a minor thing (though annoying for non-English Brits), it's the sentiment that's the problem. 'Wider still and wider shall thy bounds be set, god, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet'. I think most of the commonwealth is quite glad Britain stopped setting it's bounds wider! That is a song for an empire proudly taking over the world, not a 21st century country.

[Nancy66]

I've enjoyed it and it's a great platform for up and coming competitors as well as established ones.

Claudia Fragapane, the England gold winning gymnast, was honest enough to say that in a fully inclusive competition she wouldn't be in the top three.

[OOAOML]

my not very sporty daughter is enjoying watching the diving - the Games are great

[HappyAgainOneDay]

Yes, there are relevant potential anthems out there that would be better than GSTQ. I think its problem if any is that it's soooo slow and dirgelike. There's no 'gusto' in it - no emotion felt.

[Idontseeanyicegiants]

YABU it's been actually really good despite me being all sported out this year I've finally got into it
Not so sure about the opening ceremony but Glasgow are doing an excellent hosting job and the coverage has been spectacular.
I vow to thee my country always makes me well up.. So does Jerusalem if it's done well.

[HappyAgainOneDay]

Sorry everyone about NI. I've been away and missed it all fro the Opening Ceremony to yesterday. I haven't heard NI mentioned once so thought it wasn't there.

[HappyAgainOneDay]

Thanks, Wriggle You beat me. I've only just got back here.

[HappyAgainOneDay]

Struggling Londonderry Air (Danny Boy).

[Trooperslane]

I'm in Glasgow too and it's been fucking fantastic.

Yabvvvvu April.

[AlpacaLypse]

Just been looking up lyrics to a couple of potential English Anthems.

I vow to thee my country (1926 version) (Music, arrangement of Gustav Holst's Jupiter)

I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.

I heard my country calling, away across the sea,
Across the waste of waters she calls and calls to me.
Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,
And round her feet are lying the dying and the dead.
I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns,
I haste to thee my mother, a son among thy sons.

And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.

The sentiment is fairly clearly of its time, only a few years after the Great War, and three verses is too many. But the tune is fantastic and there's potential there with a bit of judicious alteration of words?

[lljkk]

I think it's fantastic that some of the world's elite aren't there. It allows athletes from smaller countries to shine, and so many of them have produced personal bests when able to race against some of the world's elite. I like seeing Rwanda-Malaysia-St. Lucia given an equal chance.

It doesn't seem as corrupt as the Olympics, either. Bonus.

[Missunreasonable]

I think the games have been great. It's fab to see so many athletes from countries who you don't see in the Olympics. I also love watching the netball and can't believe that it isn't in the Olympics.
I would rather watch the likes of our young athletes such as Jodi Williams, world class athletes such as Okagbare and Athletes from countries like Lesotho than watch people like Gatlin and Tyson Gay from the USA who have been banned from the sport several times.

[GatoradeMeBitch]

Just to add, I've been enjoying the Commonwealth Games as much as I enjoyed the Olympics (except it's a shame rowing and tennis aren't included). I've set my alarm for the women's road racing tomorrow, Emma Pooley's last race

[sashh]

Imagine having to sprint net to Usain Bolt - such a disappointment there are no Americans.

I mean there's probably no point going to a European championship either, no Americans and when it comes to swimming no Australians either.

As for the gymnastics - yes a vault with a difficulty of 7.0 is nothing is it? Anyone could do that.

[GatoradeMeBitch]

I'm sure you've been set straight by now OP, but you are being VU. The Americans aren't the only nation who are good at sports. Many of the gold medal winners from the Olympics are taking part here. I can't think of any event suffering from lack of Americans, quite honestly.

[Sp1rals]

Yeah the Derry Air.

[Raahh]

I haven't watched much of the games really, (the dcs have taken over the tv) but today I saw a man who won a weightlifting gold for a country called Kiribati. I had to look up where Kiribati was.

He was delighted, he had trained for this, come half way around the world to participate. The first medal anyone from his country has ever got. Possibly ever will. He has lived away from his home for the past 4 years to go to the Commonwealth games. He hasn't been home for 4 YEARS. That's what the Games are about for me really.

[RandomFriend]

YABU - the gymnastics has been a lovely competition with some world-class performances.

[Sapat]

It has been on non-stop in our household, there seems to be almost continuous coverage on TV, so pretty big deal. Obviously it is not the same as Olympics, but why should it?
I love Flower of Scotland and Jerusalem :)