Pole vault, Combined Events, cage fighting and why we must thank Mondo Duplantis . . .

Tuesday 7th July 2026

Photo by Jamie Williamson

P icked for Scotland: 39 head for Scotstoun as full Games team named

Two words sum up perfectly the forthcoming Commonwealth Games for Jax Thoirs . . . unfinished business.

And, if the pole vaulter’s Glasgow 2026 return delivers the medal moment he craves, it seems Team Scotland will have Swede superstar Mondo Duplantis to thank.

After a fourth-place finish (on countback) at Hampden at Glasgow 2014, Jax missed Gold Coast 2018 through injury and then dropped out of the sport a year or two later.

Watching the 2024 Olympics – with Duplantis raising the bar – stirred ambitions for a comeback, however.

‘I never thought a couple of years ago that I would even have this chance,’ he reflected.

‘Now that I’m selected for the team, I am very grateful for an opportunity to sort of rewrite maybe the wrongs of the past. I mean I loved Glasgow 2014, probably thought I was going to go on to do some more after that, and now instead the two Glasgow Commonwealth Games are going to end up being the two biggest events I’ve ever done.

‘I was fourth last time; so obviously one better than that and you are in the medals. So my clear target is to improve on my finish last time.’

So what drew him back to the pole vault runway?

‘It took a couple of years to kind of completely forget about the sport. I felt like I needed a mental rest from it.

‘I think it’s important not to force things. I think you have to be motivated, you have to be excited to compete well. So I well, wasn’t (excited to compete) around Covid time.

‘But as I watched the Olympics in 2024 and was getting into coaching with my club, I started realising that this sport is a beautiful sport and I love it. So I wanted to jump again and took it each day at a time.

‘Pole vault was definitely one of the highlights of that Paris Games so, yes, it was easy motivation watching Duplantis to get excited about the event again. And here I am.’

Mile duo in focus – Erin and Sarah

There are so many key messages for young athletes – and older – in the ‘Jax is back’ story.

‘People put lot of pressure on themselves. Maybe once you’re close to sort of making a living from the sport, it’s easy to get caught up in the urgency to try and trying to improve your performances in a hurry because of that.

‘But everyone’s an individual, everyone’s on their own journey. I think if you’re forcing things, it’s never gonna work.

‘I think you have to do what’s natural to you and sometimes that could be later than it is for some other people. So whether you’re smashing it young or you take a break and come back late, yes, there’s always a chance if you feel up for it, give yourself a shot.’

Jax enjoyed gymnastics as a youngster and he still relishes the challenges of his event.

‘I think I was drawn to the event from the start because I like a bit of adrenaline, I like that sort of fear. In pole vault, you are battling with fear and I don’t know if any of the other athletics events challenge you as much.

‘So that’s what I love about the event, it’s a very intricate, complicated event and there are so many different things to think about. You’re never bored with this event.’

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Callum Newby (photo by Jamie Williamson)

Decathlete Callum Newby, meanwhile, is rewriting the Scottish Combined Events record books in Games year.

He landed the Indoor Heptathlon Record earlier this year and then eclipsed the Decathlon tally to qualify for Glasgow 2026.

Callum, who represents Edinburgh AC and is based in Manchester might lay claim to the most eye-catching back story of our 39-strong squad.

‘It is true I tried cage-fighting once – but only once,’ laughed Callum.

‘I mean, it was definitely something I’ve always wanted to do. I think it was more that my parents told me: ‘You should never do that, it’s a stupid thing to do.’

‘Of course being a stubborn 21-year-old that just made me more likely to go through with it. It was in the off-season, and that was that ‘one and done’.

‘The CE Records and Commonwealth Games selection was something I have targeted for a long time. It’s been the big goal for the last year to 18 months of my life.

‘I honestly couldn’t be happier to finally make the qualifying and to do so via a decathlon Scottish Record.

‘I’ve had injuries which were unfortunate but I think for me it was really the motivation of being at home games and I thought, I’ve one opportunity in my lifetime to be at home Commonwealth Games.

‘It won’t come around again. So I resolved to leave no stone unturned and then everything just seemed to fall into place.’

Callum is one of three Combined Events Scots selected. Joel McFarlane joins him in the decathlon with Allie Routledge competing in the Women’s heptathlon.

‘It is great to see CE represented so well in the team,’ added Callum.

‘Obviously the likes of Joel, we’ve trained together and competed for years, so it’s great that we’ve both come up together from kids and both made it to the same home, Commonwealth Games. It’s really exciting.’