Australia's chef de mission Petria Thomas has rejected claims that the nation's record-breaking Commonwealth Games campaign has made the team the 'bullies' of the event.
The Australian team finished the 11-day Glasgow Games with 171 medals, 61 more than traditional rivals England, and 70 golds, which dwarfed England's tally by 41.
Record haul despite reduced program
The remarkable dominance came even though the sports program was halved from 20 to 10, following Glasgow's late rescue of the event after Victoria withdrew as host. The 70 golds exceeded the 67 Australia won at the 2022 Birmingham Games.
The medal procession, particularly in the swimming pool, athletics track and cycling velodrome, has prompted mutterings that Australia's superiority could harm the future of a Games already under scrutiny in the modern sporting calendar.
'We're just good at our sport'
But Thomas, an Olympic champion swimmer, dismissed the idea she was asked about directly: whether Australia's gold-and-green domination was unhealthy for the Games.
"Oh look, some may say that," she said. "Obviously, we've been very, very successful here, and some countries may not have had quite full-strength teams. You can only compete against who turns up. So I'm sure this has been a different Games in that respect (with a truncated schedule) but I'm sure with an increased program in 2030 in Ahmedabad, everything will be back up at full strength, and we're really looking forward to it."
Netball upset and underdog support
Thomas was also asked about the delight around the Exhibition Centre when Jamaica knocked out the supposedly invincible Diamonds in Saturday's netball semi-final. Some saw that reaction as a response to an Australian team seen as too good, almost bullying outclassed opponents.
"Oh, I wouldn't categorise us as bullies," said Thomas. "We're just good at our sport, and there's been a lot of investment in this team. Everyone likes an underdog. We're the same in Australia, we like underdogs as well. Our netball team did great. They obviously got up (to beat England) for the bronze medal and after a disappointing loss, we're really proud of them."
Chief executive hails broad success
Craig Phillips, Commonwealth Games Australia chief executive, told AAP there were many reasons for the success, but above all it was clear his nation had "turned up".
"We wanted to, our athletes came here to succeed because it was important to do it," Phillips said. "Probably some teams were not at the strength they needed to be, and I guess they need to have a look at their own performances around that."
He added: "The other thing that's really important is that while we sit at the top of the medal tally, look at all the different countries that have won medals, it's really important for them, particularly like some of our Pacific neighbours. So while the dominance of the Australian team might seem a story, actually everybody's having some success."
Fiji, Nauru, Norfolk Island, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu were among the 45 nations who won at least one medal, illustrating his point.
Thomas said there was a "sense of satisfaction" at how her team had eclipsed England, saying: "We probably have exceeded expectations. And the athletes have just been incredible, the performances across the board, across all sports, have just been amazing. So, just so super proud of what they've been able to do here."
