EDITORIAL: The Commonwealth Games are a display of the very best of us
The Games put a smile on our faces, uplifted our souls, and have proven to be a wonderfully quintessential Australian moment.
It is surely impossible to have followed the Commonwealth Games without feeling great pride in our amazing and inspirational athletes.
The medal tally on Friday was showing Australia had absolutely dominated the programme (including para sports) with an incredible 51 gold, 24 silver and 35 bronze.
The final figure will undoubtedly be even higher.
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Just three days after Rose Davies became the first Australian to win the 10,000m, she became the first-ever female athlete in history to complete the middle distance double by taking out the 5000m.
The netballers have gone from strength to strength.
Sprint sensation Lachie Kennedy became the fastest man Australia has ever produced as he won a silver medal in the 100m.
Torrie Lewis broke her own Australian record and took home a bronze in the women’s 100m.
The swimmers’ domination was off the charts, and has revealed a deep depth and spread of talent across the entire squad.
Among them, Kyle Chalmers tied with Ben Armbruster in the men’s 50m butterfly to notch his 10th Commonwealth Games gold to move him past Ian Thorpe as Australia’s most successful male swimmer at the Games.
And Shayna Jack — who had announced her retirement on the eve of the competition — finished her final meet with a team gold and two individual bronzes.
But the Games has also been about so much more than medals.
It has slotted into the story of the nation’s long love affair with our sporting champions.
In doing so it followed those long ago days before easy air travel and instant communications.
In the days when our athletes would head off by sea into the big wide world beyond our shores, staying away for weeks or months.
And we followed their achievements by listening to the radio, and celebrated their triumphs with glee.
If the world saw us as a small and largely unimportant country clinging to the edge of the globe, our sporting teams could show them something else.
An Australian medal was not only a triumph of the underdog, but also an example of what we were — free-spirited and always ready to have a crack.
How we loved to punch above our weight.
Of course the world has changed and so have we.
Our population has swelled and we can see those in the green and gold in glorious colour in real time.
And what a delight it has been to watch this golden generation of young Australians put their talents on show.
It is important to remember their moments of triumph have not happened by magic.
They are the result of years of hard work, and an iron will to keep going when times were tough.
Their post-event media interviews are just as impressive, displaying freshness, respectfulness, confidence and yes, even a certain wholesomeness.
And there is also a delightful humility about them too.
The Games put a smile on our faces and lifted the national mood.
The event has proven to be a wonderfully quintessential Australian moment.
