Last in 2014, gold four years on, Glasgow a turning point for Stewart
Mark Stewart was a Commonwealth Games champion in 2018, having finished 'dead last' in his first race four years before
- Published
Mark Stewart describes his debut Commonwealth Games appearance in Glasgow 12 years ago as "probably the most pivotal point in my career" as the Scottish cyclist prepares to return to the city this summer.
Back in 2014, Stewart was a student in Dundee, sleeping on a pal's couch when in Glasgow to prepare for the Games.
He was "dead last" in the points race with aching legs and doubts over racing again the next day, but bounced back for a sixth-place finish in the scratch race.
Four years on, he won the points race gold in Australia's Gold Coast.
The 30-year-old can also boast three World Championship medals [two silver, one bronze] and was part of the Team GB track team at the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Recalling his first experience of the Commonwealth Games, Stewart told BBC Scotland: "It was massive, probably the most pivotal point in my career, if you could pinpoint a moment or a race that changed a trajectory.
"It allowed me to show the GB team, to show the international track cycling community that I could compete.
"I took a kicking in the points race and I remember thinking 'I don't know how it's going to be possible to race again tomorrow the way I feel right now'.
"But coming sixth in the scratch race was a turning point for me mentally, to go 'okay, I can do this and I do belong'."
'New lease of life'
On the chances of adding to his medal collection in Glasgow, Stewart said "it's definitely on the radar".
"I have started this season with a new road team [Modern Adventure Pro Cycling] and it has been a new lease of life for me," he explained.
"I've got a brand new coach. I am being exposed to extremely high level road races which is really stepping me up physically.
"So I am pretty excited to come back to Glasgow to try and win."
'Grandad was riding a bike at 97'
Perhaps we should not be surprised at Stewart's success, given the sporting pedigree in his family.
His dad Stan was a top level Ironman triathlon competitor while mum Caroline was a well-regarded hill runner.
Mark's cycling roots can be traced even further back to his grandad.
"My mum's dad, Neil Sinclair, he rode a bike until he was 97 years old," he said.
"He had a garage filled with bicycles, wardrobes filled with old cycling tops and caps, so it is something that has always been there, I had that identity growing up and that's probably where a lot of the love and passion stems from.
"I was very lucky there was a strong cycling community, if Dundee Discovery Junior Cycling Club hadn't started when I was 10 years old I wouldn't have a cycling career.
"Having that local club is vital to creating that community atmosphere and for me to progress through the youth years.
"The contrast to that would be through school and other avenues, it was non-existent.
"I remember the thought of speaking to teachers or even to peers to suggest that you were going to be a pro athlete or that it was your dream to ride the Tour de France, in somewhere like Dundee that was like a foreign idea."
