The Glasgow Commonwealth Games have ‘saved and reinvented’ the format and inspired every other nation to host the showpiece going forward, says chief executive Phil Batty.
The last 11 days have seen a scaled-back Games on Scottish soil, with Glasgow stepping in to host them after Victoria, Australia pulled out owing to soaring costs.
The city played host to 10 sports rather than the 20 contested in Birmingham four years ago and used pre-existing venues such as Scotstoun, the SEC and Tollcross Centre to make them more sustainable.
That looks set to mark the blueprint going forward as the Commonwealth baton is now passed to the Indian city of Amdavad for 2030.
Batty, the man responsible for delivering Glasgow 2026, hailed the success of the Scottish spectacle and believes it can be a catalyst for more nations stepping up to host in the future.
"Glasgow saved the Commonwealth Games but it also reinvented the Commonwealth Games”, he said.
"I don't think we can underestimate that the future of the Commonwealth Games was in jeopardy.
"We have created a Games here that will inspire more nations to host but, probably more importantly, that every nation feels it could host at some point in the next 100 years.
"It isn't about saving something to preserve it. It is about reinventing something to give it the purpose and vision it needs to last.
"This is a really important moment for the movement to become a truly Commonwealth-wide global sporting competition.
"Glasgow and Scotland should be incredibly proud, of not what only has happened here but what that means for the whole Commonwealth in the years and decades to come."
Batty was speaking ahead of Sunday’s closing ceremony, which featured a performance from Simple Minds and a dazzling fireworks display over the River Clyde.
Athletes from 74 nations were in attendance as the Glasgow band opened with their iconic 1985 hit ‘Alive and Kicking’, the soundtrack for the advent of the Premier League and an apt fit given the success of this summer’s showpiece.
The privately-funded event has been delivered over 18 months on ‘triple speed’ compared to a typical build-up of six years, with its projected cost just £162.6m compared to £543m the last time the city hosted the Games back in 2014.
The cost for Birmingham 2022 was also £680m, with Glasgow hosting the athletics at Scotstoun, swimming at Tollcross and gymnastics and cycling at the city’s International Arena.
Netball, bowls, boxing, basketball, wheelchair basketball and weightlifting were all hosted at the SEC.
The scaled-back Games saw 215 medal events compared to 261 when the city last staged the Games in 2014, also including a record 47 para-sports events.
Team Scotland finished fifth in the overall medal table, winning 39 overall – including 13 golds – behind Australia, England, Canada and India.
The first of those golds was won by Duncan Scott – Team GB’s most decorated Olympic swimmer – in the pool, while Josh Kerr, Melanie Woods and Neil Fachie starred on the track and in the velodrome.
Batty shined a light on how future editions of the Games may look as attention now turns to the sub-continent in four years’ time.
"It may be a twin nation host in Asia, it may be a multi-island host in the Pacific Islands, it might be an absolutely compact multi-venue model in Africa,” he added.
"This will look different in every edition but, importantly, it will now be designed to the place that is hosting."
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