The impact the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games had upon Cameron Lynn was greater than most.
Lynn was just 11 years old when he sat in the stands at 12 years ago and watched Scotland’s men’s gymnastic squad win their first-ever team medal when they picked up an astonishing silver medal.
Just over a decade on, Lynn believes what that group of Scottish gymnasts achieved on home soil sparked something within him, and he’s now hoping to replicate their success.
“The team final was over two days at Glasgow 2014 and I was there the first day before watching day two on the telly,” he recalls.
“They won their medal and I was like ‘wow, I want to do that one day’.
“I was never a kid who wanted to win loads of medals, I just wanted to compete at the Commonwealth Games. That was always my dream as a kid. And here I am doing it.”
Glasgow 2026 will be 23-year-old Lynn’s second Commonwealth Games having made his Team Scotland debut as a teenager at Birmingham 2022.
Second time around, Lynn is a considerably more mature athlete, which is illustrated by him being appointed captain of Scotland’s men’s gymnastics squad for this Games, which also includes Hamish Carter, Pavel Karnejenko, Connor Sullivan and Reuben Ward.
As captain, Lynn will have considerable responsibility upon his shoulders but he’s confident in every member of this squad and he’s hopeful, optimistic even, that they can improve upon their fifth place achieved in the team event at Birmingham 2022.
“I was really surprised to be named captain, but it’s a huge honour,” the West Lothian athlete says.
“In my role as a team captain, I’ll be up first on the majority of the pieces and try to settle everybody's nerves.
“The drive and determination that’s come from our fifth place finish at Birmingham 2022 is what's pushing this team to try and win a medal this time.
“We're trying not to get too far ahead of ourselves and we're trying to focus on the task at hand - but we're definitely striving for a team medal.”
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Following the conclusion of the team event, Lynn and his compatriots will head into the individual competition, with the all-around event Lynn’s primary focus. The calibre of gymnasts in this Commonwealth Games is stellar - the likes of three-time Olympic champion, Max Whitlock, will be in action - but having won medals on both the pommel and the floor at last year’s British Championships, Lynn is quietly optimistic that, if he can get things right on the day, he can give the Scottish crowd something to cheer about.
“The confidence I’ve developed over the past four years, in which I’ve competed for GB, has really pushed me on and given me that belief that as a Scottish gymnast, I can go out and win medals for my country at a home Commonwealth Games.
“Firstly, I’m striving for the all-around final. High bar is a big thing for me because it’s my favourite piece and my P-bar routine is really good too.
“The way I approach competitions is not to focus on the outcome but none of the athletes are going into the Commonwealth Games just to take part - everybody wants to win a medal.
“But, for me, I want to have a clean competition and I believe, especially in the all-around, if I can go clean and be consistent, I think there's every chance that I could potentially win a medal.”
