RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 2 sources[Reuters]
Twelve years ago, wee Reuben Ward watched wide-eyed as Dan Keatings won gymnastics gold for Scotland in Glasgow.
That was the day he began dreaming.
In his nine-year-old mind, the notion of competing in the Commonwealth Games for Scotland began to form. Not winning gold. Not even being on a podium. Just pulling on the vest and getting out there.
So when the 21-year-old took the acclaim of an ecstatic Emirates Arena crowd after being announced as the Glasgow 2026 all-around champion, it was all he had ever dreamed of and so much more.
Ward - whose parents Brendan and Lisa left East Kilbride for Bury before he was born - had just become the country's third gold medallist on day three of the Games.
"I remember seeing him win and seeing how it was a big deal to people and I thought 'I want to do that'," Ward told BBC Sport Scotland, recalling Keating's success while in the afterglow of his own.
"So to be here now, having done it myself, is spectacular. It's such a full-circle moment. Glasgow and East Kilbride have been like second homes to me my entire life so to do it here is incredibly special."
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'I'm just so overwhelmed, man'
There was a sense beforehand that Ward could contend here. A bronze maybe. Perhaps even a silver depending how things go.
His team-mates privately made noises that, should everything fall in his favour, gold could be within reach. They had seen him in training, and performed alongside him in the team event on Friday, where Scotland finished fourth.
They knew he was in a good place.
Ward sat seventh after the floor exercise, but streaked into the lead after a splendid performance on the pommel - routinely his strongest event.
He retained that advantage after the rings - by which point assorted Team Scotland officials and members of the Scottish media had arrived in dribs and drabs, with the sniff of a gold in the air.
Ward's vault had been compromised in the team event by a slight issue in his run up - he had to adapt it on the fly and could only execute two twists - but he nailed it this time, performing three to go into the final two rotations top of the standings.
A strong showing in the parallel bars - and a judicious Team Scotland appeal to add an extra 0.100 - maintained his lead at 0.550, meaning he needed to keep his shape in the horizontal bar to clinch gold.
Ward did that and more.
As he stuck his landing, his coach Jake Seager fell to his knees celebrating before the two embraced. It wasn't official yet, but they knew.
"I like to imagine the best scenario possible and that was winning," added Ward when asked what he was thinking as his head hit the pillow on Saturday night.
"It kept me awake a little bit because I was picturing it and feeling the emotions. But this beat the expectations by a mile.
"Falling short on Friday was heartbreaking and I'm just so overwhelmed, man. I can barely put words together."
It could get even better. He goes on the floor and pommel on Monday, and is a real medal contender in the later.
His celebrations will have to wait for now, but by Tuesday, Ward could well be getting up to all sorts of capers in Glasgow with his Scotland team-mates.
"Tonight looks like eating hotel food and probably getting a pretty bad night's sleep," he said. "Then I'll come in tomorrow, and try to relax and hit my routine.
"On Tuesday, after the competition, I'll celebrate big time with the team, with my boys. I love them so much and them coming to see me at the end when I was going around of the arena was special.
"I'm hoping we'll get to experience a bit of Glasgow.. "
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