Birmingham 2022: Team Scotland's five highlights from a memorable Commonwealth Games

Birmingham 2022 brought plenty of magical moments for Team Scotland.

The most successful Games for the nation aside from Glasgow 2014, a half-century of medals were totted up on the final day of sporting competition.

Here are five highlights that will live long in the memory.

Bowls brilliance

72-year-old Rosemary Lenton, Scotland’s second oldest team member, made history with Pauline Wilson with gold in the women's para pairs lawn bowls.

Two decades on from the start of the health complications that led her needing a wheelchair, the Dumfries pensioner became the oldest-ever Scottish Commonwealth gold medallist, although that record was beaten just a few days later by 75-year-old George Miller in the lawn bowls mixed pairs.

Lenton and Wilson held their nerve in a tight gold medal match to beat Australia's Cheryl Lindfield and Serena Bonnell to claim the first Games title in women’s para lawn bowls.

Great Scott

With six medals at Birmingham, swimmer Duncan Scott is now Team Scotland's most decorated Commonwealth Games medallist ever, with 13 in total. (Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)

The Commonwealth Games are often decried for weak fields and a lack of competitive edge, but you couldn’t have said that about swimming’s race of the Games.

Duncan Scott and England’s Tom Dean staged a rematch of the Olympic final in the 200m freestyle that was given top billing and delivered a thriller on day two.

The Stirling star finished strongly to beat Dean by 0.39s in a Games record time of 1:45.02, with Sandwell Aquatics Centre shaking to its core on the final length.

The 25-year-old is Scotland’s most decorated Commonwealth athlete of all time with 13 medals overall.

Eilish McColgan delivered Team Scotland's moment of the Games by winning gold in the women's 10,000m. (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Boxing clever

Three brash, big-talking boxers delivered on every syllable with golds on a super Sunday for Scottish boxing.

Sam Hickey, Sean Lazzerini and Reese Lynch all delivered superb performances to win Commonwealth Games gold medals.

Middleweight Hickey had it hardest, edging out Aussie Callum Peters in a 3-2 split-decision to reach the top step.

Team Scotland flag bearer and bronze medallist Micky Yule celebrates a lift during the Men's Para Powerlifting Heavyweight Final. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)

Light heavyweight Lazzerini, famous for his Ronaldo-style celebration, outclassed Welsh rival Taylor Bevan to take 4-1 victory.

And Lynch made it three golds in a matter of hours with a dominant win over auritian boxer Louis Richarno Colin to cap a memorable day at the NEC.

Yule turns tide

Micky Yule entered the Games carrying the Scottish flag and left it clutching the medal that eluded him for so long.

The powerlifting Paralympian was determined to make better memories in the host city having returned from Afghanistan in a coma fighting for his life after an IED in Afghanistan blew off both his legs.

Yule’s tale had it all. Having finished fourth in Glasgow and on the Gold Coast four years ago, he pulled a personal best bench press of 192kg out of the bag to win bronze.

The 43-year-old said: “I was going to be the nearly man of the Commonwealth Games. I got in the mindset that there was no way that was happening.”

McColgan magic

We couldn’t forget this one - Scotland’s first Commonwealth gold medal on the track will live very long in the memory.

Eilish McColgan’s 10,000m victory was for many here the moment of the Games full stop and the loudest roar generated by the Alexander Stadium’s wall of noise.

Mum Liz delivered a similar moment of national significance at the 1986 Games in Edinburgh, and she was there to watch her daughter’s lifelong dream come true.

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Diving duo secure historic gold for Scotland on final day of Commonwealth Games