Four days. One velodrome. Twenty-six medal events.
And for Wales, one of the most exciting opportunities of the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
From 23 July to 2 August 2026, the Commonwealth Games return to Glasgow, bringing together athletes from across the Commonwealth for 11 days of competition. It will be a more compact Games than previous editions, with 10 sports staged across four venues. But for Welsh supporters, the meaning remains huge.
The Commonwealth Games are a rare and powerful moment for Wales to compete in its own right — under the Welsh flag, on a global stage, with Welsh identity and ambition at the heart of the story.
And when it comes to sports to watch, cycling has every reason to be high on the list.
Wales has momentum
At Birmingham 2022, cycling was Wales’s biggest medal contributor.
Team Wales won seven cycling medals across track and road: one gold, one silver and five bronze. That haul formed a major part of Wales’s overall total of 28 medals at the Games and showed the strength and depth of Welsh cycling across sprint, endurance, para cycling and road events.
There were standout moments across the team. James Ball and pilot Matt Rotherham led the way on the track, winning gold in the men’s Tandem B Sprint and silver in the men’s Tandem B 1000m Time Trial. On the road, Geraint Thomas added bronze in the men’s Individual Time Trial.
Lowri Thomas, Rhian Edmunds and Emma Finucane – Alex Broadway/SWpix.com
Eluned King – by Will Palmer/SWpix.com
James Ball & pilot Matthew Rotherham – Alex Broadway/SWpix.com
James Ball & pilot Matthew Rotherham – Alex Broadway/SWpix.com
Lowri Thomas, Emma Finucane and Rhian Edmunds – Alex Broadway/SWpix.com
Emma Finucane – Will Palmer/SWpix.com
Emma Finucane – Will Palmer/SWpix.com
Will Roberts – Will Palmer/SWpix.com
William Roberts – Alex Broadway/SWpix.com
James Ball & Matthew Rotherham – Will Palmer/SWpix.com
James Ball & Matthew Rotherham – Will Palmer/SWpix.com
Geraint Thomas – Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
Geraint Thomas – Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
Wales also claimed track bronze medals through Emma Finucane in the women’s Sprint, Eluned King in the women’s 25km Points Race, William Roberts in the men’s 15km Scratch Race, and the women’s Team Sprint squad of Rhian Edmunds, Emma Finucane and Lowri Thomas.
Birmingham proved Wales could compete with the best. Glasgow now offers the next test.
A sport with deep Commonwealth roots
Cycling has been part of the Commonwealth Games story since 1934, when it appeared at the second edition of the Games in London. It has featured at every Games since, meaning Glasgow 2026 will mark cycling’s 22nd appearance on the Commonwealth Games programme.
The sport has changed over that time. Across different editions, the programme has included track, road, mountain bike and para cycling.
For Glasgow 2026, the focus will be firmly on the boards of the velodrome.
What makes Glasgow different?
Unlike Birmingham 2022, there will be no road cycling or mountain biking at Glasgow 2026. Cycling will be all about track cycling and para track cycling, with competition taking place at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome from 30 July to 2 August 2026.
The full programme will feature 26 medal events — 18 in track cycling and eight in para track cycling.
That means four days of high-speed racing, tight tactics and split-second decisions. Some events are pure power, with riders launching themselves around the track in sprints, time trials and keirin races. Others are about endurance, race craft and nerve, from the points race and scratch race to the individual pursuit.
The team events bring their own drama too, where timing and trust matter just as much as speed.
Wales’s specific medal events though, will not be confirmed until the Team Wales cycling squad is announced later this summer.
Why it matters for Wales
For Welsh riders, the Commonwealth Games are special. It is one of the few moments in their careers when they get to compete for Wales in their own right — wearing the Welsh kit, representing the Welsh flag and racing with a nation behind them.
It is also a powerful moment for the next generation. Seeing Welsh cyclists compete on a Commonwealth stage can inspire young riders across Wales to take up the sport, join a club, visit a track or start on their own journey through the cycling pathway.
That pathway matters too. Many of the riders hoping to represent Wales in Glasgow have progressed through Beicio Cymru’s talent and performance pathway, showing what is possible when young riders are supported from their first steps in the sport through to international competition.
Glasgow 2026 is a chance for supporters to get behind our Welsh cyclists as they take on the Commonwealth’s best in one of the most intense sporting arenas.
Birmingham showed what Wales can do. Glasgow is the next opportunity to show it again.