Commonwealth conundrum

How relevant are the Commonwealth Games to our top athletes these days? On a scale of importance, it would probably figure at the very bottom to the majority of athletic's big names, but to the many others it's a golden opportunity to be grasped.

Liz Lynch McColgan 1986My first proper recollection of a Commonwealth Games, which I watched avidly, was the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh which I saw a young Liz Lynch (later McColgan) wow the home crowd with victory in the 10,000m. (I even still have somewhere the Commemorative £2 coin that was minted specially for the Games). Liz's win was my abiding memory of those Games and proves how a young star could grasp the opportunity to make their name on the world stage - even if that world consists of a gathering of nations whose athletes are considered not as competitive as the world or European stage.

I'm considering the Commonwealth conundrum after hearing that Britain's world heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis is going to skip the Commonwealth Games in India in October. Ennis says her focus is to peak for the European Championships in July and then concentrate on her winter training programme. This gathering of Commonwealth nations clearly doesn't warrant the World Champion turning up in an attempt to gain Commonwealth gold - a shame, but nonetheless understandable for an event that just seems to be less and less relevant for the majority of our top quality athletes.

I'm sure there'll be plenty more high profile names who will take a similar course of action and give this little jolly in India a miss, and then there's probably a fair few for whom security concerns will prompt a non-attendance too.

So, it's time for some of our lesser known athletes to step up to the plate and use the Commonwealths as a stepping stone onto bigger and better things, much like young Liz did 24 years ago.