Commonwealth Games: can we have a regular Team Cymru, please?

Iwan Williams

Team Cymru finished in the top 10 of the Commonwealth Games medal table after winning 31 medals in Glasgow. Iwan Williams asks why Welsh athletes must now wait another four years for the chance to represent their country.

I have fond memories of the Commonwealth Games as a youngster, watching the likes of Colin Jackson, Iwan Thomas and Jamie Baulch represent Cymru. But growing older, I’ve felt increasingly conflicted regarding the Games. It has dark origins: the British Empire. It dropped the ‘Empire’ name after 1966: let’s face it, ‘Commonwealth’ sounds much nicer and cuddlier.

And it’s a form of sportswashing long before the Saudis got involved: we invaded your lands, stole your resources, killed your people and forced your natives to speak English rather than your indigenous languages. But let’s put that aside and run, swim and cycle together as one united family!

However, it gives Cymru the only opportunity at present to take part in athletics and other sports as Cymru,and how wonderful it is to see ‘Cymru’ on vests and tracksuits. A special experience and honour for the athletes which regrettably is only available every four years.

The words from Team Cymru members make it clear how much they value the opportunity: they talk of the pride and honour in representing Cymru, they mention how it ‘hits home’ differently, how unique and special it is. We’ve seen Ruby Evans, Aled Siôn Davies, Emma Finucane, Anna Morris, Rhian Edmunds, Lowri Thomas, Olivia Breen on the main podium, bursting with pride as they see Y Ddraig Goch held aloft and hear Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau being played.

That they have to wait another four years for the opportunity isn’t right. And some Welsh athletes, due to injuries and loss of form, might never have the opportunity to represent Cymru. That isn’t fair nor acceptable.

Explaining Cymru’s sporting representation to an outsider is complex to say the least. We’re Cymru in football (let’s not talk about Team GB in this context), Cymru in rugby (with a British and Irish side every four years), Team GB in athletics (with the sole Team Cymru in the Commonwealth Games every four years), and England(andwales) in cricket. Our tennis players are ‘Great Britain’ but our golfers can represent Cymru. Perhaps it makes sense for someone.

So why can’t Team Cymru be the norm rather than the exception in athletics? Why can’t Team Cymru feature in the Olympic Games and World Athletics Championships? ‘Well it’s not the way it works, it’s not how it’s done, it’s Team GB and that’s that’ is hardly a justification.

And it’s worth asking: the future of the Commonwealth Games looks increasingly vulnerable, with rising costs and fewer countries looking to take on the financial burden. Glasgow stepped in at the last minute when Victoria, Australia, pulled out. The 2030 edition will be hosted by Ahmedabad, India, but looking ahead the sustainability of the Commonwealth Games has to be questioned.

And if it goes, what then for Team Cymru? Will our athletes ever have the chance to represent the red of Cymru should the situation change? One for Commonwealth Games Wales,Sport Wales and our new,ambitious Welsh Government to discuss further.

Talent

Does Team Cymru deserve to compete in the Olympic Games on the grounds of talent and success? Absolutely. In 2026, Cymru finished ninth in the medals table ahead of Malaysia (36 million people) and South Africa (63 million people). In 2022, Cymru finished eighth, and in 2018, Cymru finished seventh.

In a nation of just over three million people with poor transport infrastructure and limited sporting facilities, we keep producing elite athletes, gymnasts, swimmers, boxers, cyclists etc. Punching above our weight is what we do.

Competing in the Olympic Games would give a broader range of Welsh athletes the opportunity to represent Cymru: only ten sports featured in the 2026 Commonwealth Games, whilst the 2028 Summer Olympic Games will include 36 sports. Another eight sports featured in the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The financial cost of competing as Team Cymru will be questioned, but the budgetary challenges are hardly insurmountable, and there are nations of all sizes across the world who prove that it is possible. And whilst some will lament the loss or reduced representation of Team GB, there are plenty who would also welcome the chance to see Team England and Team Scotland in action on one of the world’s biggest sporting stages, representation in line with the FIFA World Cup.

Emotional

It’s been emotional seeing our athletes win gold in Glasgow, what it means for them and their families. And what it means for those of us who just want Cymru to be given the same opportunity as every other nation: to represent ourselves, no better or no worse. “The Dragon on my shirt” was all the motivation that Gareth Bale needed, and no doubt it resonates with our Welsh athletes, past (all the way to 1930) and present.

Congratulations to all our medal winners and all Team Cymru participants, and a special word for the phenomenal Emma Finucane, winning four gold medals. Carmarthen: build the statue.

We won’t hear Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau in Beijing for the 2027 World Athletics Championships, and we won’t see Y Ddraig Goch in Los Angeles for the 2028 Summer Olympic Games.

Frustratingly, we’ll have to wait until the 2030 Commonwealth Games for the next Team Cymru appearance. Hopefully that long wait will change one day.

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