Golden legacy within Scotland’s grasp

As the curtain falls on the Gold Coast, Commonwealth Team Scotland will be rightly thrilled by its medal-heavy performance. The country’s most successful overseas Games has made heroes of locally-grown athletes and proved Scotland can compete on the world stage in a host of disciplines, even as the national obsession – the international football team – continues to struggle.

As the team prepares to board the plane home, various questions arise.

The first regards how a fortnight of sporting brilliance should be marked in coming weeks.

Royal Mail has ruled out any suggestion that post boxes should be painted gold in medallists’ home towns, pointing out that was a one-off for the London Olympics.

That may be so, but an equivalent honour of some sort should be considered.

The other lingering issue is how to tap into the athletic endeavours to benefit future generations.

It is all very well celebrating elite success but the young – and not so young – need to be inspired to emulate their idols, providing a conveyor belt of talent and improving the health of the nation in general.

The official report into the Glasgow Games showed there was little upswing in physical activity, despite the related euphoria which seemed to sweep the nation.

Another rare chance to rectify that should not be wasted.