Dumfries’ golden girl Rosemary Lenton felt like she was “dreaming” after making history in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The para lawn bowler, who turns 73 this month, became the oldest gold medallist in the history of the event after clinching victory in the women’s pairs B6-B8 final alongside Pauline Wilson.
She said: “We always knew we could do it. In the round-robin, we didn’t always produce it, but when it mattered we did, and that’s the important thing.
“I felt like I was dreaming when we won gold.”
Rosemary and Pauline, 58, defeated Australia’s Cheryl Lindfield and Serena Bonnell 17-5 in the gold-medal match at Leamington Spa’s Victoria Park on Wednesday.
The Scots had lost 16-15 to Australia and 23-11 to South Africa but on Saturday morning they enjoyed victory over New Zealand 15-12 and later gained revenge on Monday when they beat England 16-10 to clinch their place in the final.
Rosemary said: “It is the first time that women’s para bowls have been included in the games. I thought I would never get to a Commonwealth Games and if I did it would be as a spectator. This is effectively our Olympics because we cannot get any higher.”
A spokesman at The Crichton Bowling Club where she is a member, said everyone is “delighted” with Rosemary’s gold medal win.
He added: “She has worked so hard for this and deserves the many congratulations she has received. We cannot wait to see her on her return to the club.”
Director of High Performance at Sportscotland, Mike Whittingham, also praised Rosemary’s amazing achievement: “Both Rosemary and Pauline made their debut for Team Scotland at these games, and to come away with a gold medal and become the Commonwealth champions is a remarkable achievement. The whole country is very proud.”
A former competitive sailor and cyclist who has completed charity rides in China and Russia, Rosemary set out on the path to sporting glory following health concerns.
She said: “I went into hospital for what was meant to be a straightforward operation but I got an infection and had to have nine operations and was in the hospital for three months.
“I struggled going back to work so I retired early and wanted to find something to socialise.
“I first tried curling in 2005 and later that year joined the Crichton Royal Bowling Club. I couldn’t have imagined I would come this far with what was my hobby.”
An injury that left Rosemary in a wheelchair almost two decades ago opened her eyes to the sport as a way to stay active.
Since then the gold medalist has represented Scotland at three World Bowls Championships, winning silver in the Mixed Pairs in New Zealand in 2015 and competed in nine World Championships for wheelchair curling.
