McColgan to miss Glasgow Games defence after foot fracture
Scottish athlete Eilish McColgan has withdrawn from the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow due to a lingering foot fracture. Despite her efforts to recover, she determined she lacked the necessary time to return to peak competitive form.
Why it matters
The withdrawal of a high-profile athlete from a home-country event highlights the physical toll of professional sports and the difficulty of injury recovery.
By Richard Winton BBC Sport Scotland Published 25 July 2026, 11:54 BST Updated 12 minutes ago Scotland's Eilish McColgan will miss out on the chance to defend her Commonwealth Games 10,000m title in her home country after failing to recover sufficently from a foot fracture.
McColgan, 35, emulated mother Liz by roaring to gold in Birmingham four years ago in one of the most iconic moments of that event.
In an injury-scarred spell since then, she transitioned to road racing but committed to returning to the track so she could compete at a second home Games in Glasgow after doing the steeplechase in 2014.
However, battling through a gruesome toe injury in April's London Marathon led to an undetected stress fracture.
Scotland win three medals in 45 minutes to kick-start Glasgow 2026
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