Joyous moments like cyclist Neil Fachie cementing his status as Scotland’s most successful athlete, Josh Kerr surging to victory in the men’s mile at Scotstoun Stadium, Angharad Evans claiming double gold in the pool at Tollcross and Melanie Woods claiming the women’s T54 1500m title will all live long in the memory.
In stepping up to deliver the Games, Glasgow and Scotland demonstrated real confidence and belief in the power of sport.
We know sport can energise a nation and a top five finish in the medals table for Team Scotland will have inspired many of our youngsters to follow in their heroes’ footsteps. However, those results don’t happen overnight. They are the product of years of planning and sustained investment; we only need to look at the improvements in performance sport since the launch of the National Lottery to understand the importance of consistent funding in the sporting system
This summer has, of course, also seen Scotland’s men’s football team return to the World Cup finals for the first time in 28 years, the Scottish Women’s Cricket team make the ICC Women’s T20 world cup and the Scotland Women’s Hockey team who have successfully qualified for the world cup for the first time in 24 years
Major sporting events like these give us a chance to celebrate sport and recognise the vital role it plays in the health and prosperity of the nation and in bringing our communities together. They also demonstrate the talent, dedication and ambition that exists across our sporting system.
What is crucial now is that we capitalise on the opportunities they provide. 
At sportscotland, we know the power sport has to transform lives - helping people stay active, supporting positive wellbeing, building valuable skills, and fostering strong, inclusive communities. That is why we warmly welcomed the Scottish Government’s additional £20 million investment in our sporting system, which will help even more people across Scotland to experience these benefits.
This new, targeted funding is allowing us to deliver real grassroots community impact, supporting individuals and communities where it matters most.
Our responsibility is not to accept the status quo in terms of participation, but to drive progress, close the inequality gap, and ensure more children and young people have access to quality sporting opportunities.
Sport and physical activity must be part of the solution to reversing the worrying trends in healthy life expectancy and improving outcomes for communities across Scotland.
While there are positive signs, we know there is much more to do. This targeted investment is enabling us to deliver meaningful impact at a grassroots level, supporting individuals and communities where it matters most and helping to create lasting change.
The Scottish Government’s £20 million investment into this year’s Summer of Sport, has allowed us to work with local authorities, leisure trusts and others to put on free events and provide opportunities to give children and young people the chance to get active in their local communities
It is a great example of what can be achieved when partners come together with a shared ambition to make sport more inclusive and accessible.
To keep the momentum going, though, sustained investment is needed and the scale of the task ahead of us cannot be under-estimated.
In June, sportscotland published a report estimating that approximately £15.5 billion of investment will be needed over the next 25 years to maintain and modernise sports facilities across the country.
The review confirmed what many of us in the sector already knew – Scotland’s sports facilities are facing real challenges that will require joined-up action and strong collaboration to resolve.
We know there is the need to work more collaboratively at a local, regional and national government level. We need to make better use of data to inform strategic planning and decision-making and explore innovative funding solutions as part of a broader systems approach across multiple sectors to deliver an active Scotland where everyone benefits from sport. To put it quite simply, without a critical infrastructure of sports and leisure centres, pools, ice rinks and pitches we will not have Commonwealth Games, Olympic or Paralympic medallists to celebrate in the future.
If we were able to maintain the £20 million of funding made available for the Summer of Sport and have it embedded within our core funding going forward, it would give us the chance we need to plan for the future with confidence.
We want to see a continued commitment to sport and physical activity to recognise the positive impact that investment, partnership and collaboration can have in delivering lasting benefits for communities across Scotland.
When people have the opportunity to take part, the benefits extend far beyond the playing field, improving health and wellbeing, supporting learning and achievement, strengthening communities and contributing to economic prosperity. Creating more opportunities for people to be active is an investment in Scotland's future, helping to tackle inequalities and deliver lasting benefits for individuals, communities and the public purse.
