Emma-Sue Greentree of Australia sparring outside The OVO Hydro at the SEC Centre, Glasgow.
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Alamy
By William Mata
The Commonwealth Games will begin on Thursday, with athletes having now arrived in Glasgow ahead of the Opening Ceremony at The Hydro centre.
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The 12,000-capacity venue, the largest at the stripped-down games, will host the parade with bowler Sian Honnor and swimmer Luke Greenbank chosen as England's flag bearers.
Rosie Eccles, a boxer, and bowler Daniel Salmon have been given the honour for Wales, bowler Alex Marshall and judoka Sarah Adlington will carry it for Scotland, and Northern Ireland is yet to announce.
Around 3,000 athletes will be in Scotland's largest city for the Commonwealth Games, which will be a smaller affair, owing to Victoria, Australia, pulling out in 2024 and leaving planners no time to build infrastructure.
There will be 10 sports to see in Glasgow, down from 17 when the city last hosted in 2014, and the 11,000-capacity Scotstoun Stadium will be the smallest athletics stadium in recent games memory.
But even so, the Scottish hosts will be welcoming to all and the games will provide a strong boost to the local economy.
As well as fewer sports (see below), Glasgow has not built any new accommodation for athletes, and all of the sports arenas being used were seen in the 2014 games.
Ahmedabad in India will host the Commonwealth Games in 2030, with New Delhi having hosted it in 2010. The 2030 edition will be the centenary games, which were first held in 1930.
Jamaica's Elaine Thompson-Herah will be back.
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Who are the star athletes competing in the Commonwealth Games?
The number of athletes taking part will be far smaller than in previous years, with a massive reduction in the number of sports on offer.
Swimmer Mollie O'Callaghan will compete after overcoming a spinal injury. The Australian, 22, is the world record holder for the 200m freestyle and Olympic Champion from Paris 2024.
Adam Ramsay-Peaty and Tom Dean are other big-name swimmers set to compete, with the former taking his new married name for the first time.
Jake Wightman, a former world 1,500m champion, will be among the star names in athletics, while Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson-Herah will be wanting to defend her sprint titles.
In judo, Sarah Adlington is hoping to win her third +78 kg gold, aged 39, in what will be her final professional competition.
Matty Richardson is hoping to win gold for England in the sprint events in the velodrome, having changed nationality - previously having won titles for Australia.
For the first time, the games will be shown on TNT Sports and Channel 5, with the BBC having ended its 72-year run of broadcasting.
TNT Sports outbid the BBC for rights to show live action, and the Beeb will not show any of the games at all, with 5 having secured rights to a daily highlights package.
Tickets are still on sale, although prices range from £17 for some sessions of less popular sports to three figures for medal events for athletics and swimming.
Australia is the most succesful nation in Commonwealth Games history.
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Which countries compete in the Commonwealth Games?
Around 3,000 athletes from 74 countries will take part, with Togo and Gabon being involved for the first time.
The games is open to any nation that is part of the Commonwealth, which operates as a trade association for countries with mutual interests, the majority being former members of the British Empire.
Australia is the most successful nation in Commonwealth Games history, with more than 1,000 golds, ahead of England, Canada, and India.
Several nations have joined and left the Commonwealth over the years, with the most notable departures including Malaysia and Zimbabwe.
King Charles is the head of state for 15 of the 74 nations.
