Borders swimmer Lucy Hope hoping to add to seven top-five placings, including one podium near-miss, at fourth Commonwealth Games
Borders swimmer Lucy Hope is about to make her fourth Commonwealth Games appearance – and second on home turf – and is hoping to add to the seven top-five finishes she’s racked up over the last dozen years.
Now 29, Hope, of Crailing, near Jedburgh, was only 17 when she contested her first Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014, and this week and next, following Victoria in Australia pulling out of hosting duties because of the expense involved, she’s going back to where it all began for her games career, having added two Olympics and dozens of international competitions to her CV in the interim.
First time round, she finished fourth at 4x100m medley relay, the closest she’s got to a podium place so far, and fifth twice, at 100m and 200m freestyle relays.
She picked up further fifth places at 2018’s games in Australia, at 4x200m medley relay, and 2022’s in Birmingham, at 4x100m and 200m freestyle relay and 4x100m medley relay.
Recalling her games debut, she said: “I was still at school and it was kind of unexpected.
“I was just an excitable teenager at the games and trying to soak up everything, so I think I’m coming into this one a little bit older but a little bit wiser as well.
“Since then, I’ve done two Olympic Games, four world championships and another three Commonwealth Games, so time has passed and I need to keep reminding myself of that.
“I remember from the first games that the atmosphere in the crowd was unbelievable. Tollcross International Swimming Centre is quite a small venue but the sound bounces off the walls and you get a tingling in the air.
“It’s such an exciting atmosphere to be a part of and hopefully that can be replicated again in 2026.”
Hope is to compete at 4x100m and 4x200m freestyle relays for the fourth time in Glasgow, with swimming events being contested from this Friday to next Wednesday, and she goes into her latest games sitting third in the all-time medal list for British swimmers at European championships, behind only Fran Halsall and Freya Anderson.
“We get told that a home games is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but this is twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me, so it’s just as special as the first one and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Also among a 25-strong Scottish swimming squad are eight-time Olympic medallist Duncan Scott and English-born Angharad Evans and Hope is backing the latter to add to her medal haul, saying: “I think Angharad Evans will have a lot of people shocked at how fast she’ll go.
“She’s produced so many great times already this year and goes into the games with a world-leading time.
“She joined our programme a couple of years ago and the transformation she’s undergone since she joined is unbelievable.”
Glasgow’s games will be a cut-back edition compared to previous ones because of the city stepping in at short notice but Hope believes that could be a model to follow in future to ensure the long-term future of the event, saying: “How we’ve been able to take over and adapt certain aspects of the games is a more sustainable way for them to continue.
“The whole thing of building new infrastructure and hosting a full Commonwealth Games might be things of the past, but being able to utilise existing arenas, pools and being able to hold it across multiple cities in one country would be such an exciting thing for the future.
“Scaling it down slightly might help it to last a lot longer.”
Besides her two Olympics and three Commonwealth Games appearances, Hope’s CV highlights to date include seven European Aquatics Championships long-course gold medals – one from Glasgow in 2018, four from Budapest in 2020 and two from Rome in 2022.