2026 Commonwealth Games Returning Champs: Scott, Clareburt & van Niekerk to Defend Multiple Events

2026 Commonwealth Games

• July 24 – 29, 2026 (pool swimming)
• Glasgow, Scotland
• Tollcross International Swimming Centre
• LCM (50m)
• Meet Central

We are exactly 10 days away from the start of the Commonwealth Games, a meet set to be held in Glasgow, Scotland’s most populous city. It’s the second straight edition of the meet to be held in the U.K., as Birmingham played host four years ago. Glasgow only got the nod after the Australian state of Victoria was set to host but withdrew due to rising financial costs. While we will go event by event in previewing the meet, we thought it would be wise to look at who is returning to the meet to defend their crown.

The Games, quadrennial like the Olympics, will see a fair number of new champions as several of the gold medalists from Birmingham have retired, opted not to attend, are sick, or are no longer competing in World Aquatics-sanctioned meets. Defending champion in the 100 and 200 backstroke, Kaylee McKeown was slated to attend the meet but pulled out of all her competitions this summer after revealing she was suffering from glandular fever. She’s not the only Australian to miss the meet as reigning 50 free and 50 fly champion Emma McKeon has retired, as has Games record holder Ariane Titmus, who in 2022 swept the 200, 400 and 800 freestyle events. The Aussies aren’t alone, however, in this regard, as Canada will be without the likes of Maggie McNeil, the 100 fly champion, as well as the 200 and 400 IM champion, Summer McIntosh, with McNeil having since retired and McIntosh focusing on the Pan-Pacs.

In fact, of the 16 individual events, only five have returning champions slated to compete, with Lara Van Niekerk the only two-event winner amongst the group.

Returning Commonwealth Games Medalists (Women)

The Australians swept all three relays last edition, but are missing multiple legs from each, with the 4×100 free relay only seeing O’Callaghan and Shayna Jack returning, as McKeon and Madison Wilson are both retired. Jack announced this morning that these Games will be her last competition, as she is set to hang up her goggles following the meet. Their winning 800 free and 400 medley relays have been hit even harder with MOC the lone returning leg on both.

The men’s side sees far more returning champions, as there are only five events slated to be missing the gold medalist, an exact reversal of the women’s side. England’s James Wilby, the reigning 100 breaststroke champion, and Brodie Williams, the 200 backstroke champion, have both stopped competing. Andrew Jeffcoat of New Zealand, who broke the national record in the 50 back in the process of winning the event, is also not returning, having seemingly last competed at the 2025 World in Singapore. The only other gold medalist not returning from the 2022 Commonwealth Games is still competing, albeit not for England, as Ben Proud has shifted his focus to the Enhanced Games.

Of the 11 remaining events, four of them had double winners, with New Zealand’s Lewis Clareburt collecting the golds in both the 200 Fly and 400 IM, while home nation favorite Duncan Scott will look to equal his podium finishes in the 200 free and 200 IM.

Returning Commonwealth Games Medalists (Men)

Australia won the men’s freestyle relays in Birmingham, but like the women, they will be without much of those rosters as Zac Incerti and William Yang are missing from the 4×100 free. Incerti was also part of the Games record-setting 800 free relay, which will be without his and anchor-leg teammate Mack Horton‘s services.  England took the men’s medley relay by just .08 ahead of the Australians, but will be without their front half, as both Williams and Wilby are not competing.

In the mixed relays, Australia reigned supreme, but, as with the single-gender relays, it is missing key pieces, as both Yang and McKeon were instrumental on the 4×100 free relay. McKeon also anchored the mixed medley relay in a swim of 51.88 to help set a new games record of 3:41.30, a relay that will be without the services of Kaylee McKeown, who led off in 59.01.

While we have a good number of returning champions on the men’s side, including two double gold medalists, Adam Peaty, now going as Adam Ramsay-Peaty, is a two-time champion in the 100 breaststroke, having won the event back in 2014 and then again in 2018. The Englishman finished off the podium in the event four years ago, taking 4th before rebounding to win the 50 breaststroke, the only gold medal in the event that he had yet to win (the 50 breaststroke was not yet an Olympic event). Like Peaty, Kyle Chalmers, Duncan Scott, and Kylie Masse are also medalists from the 2018 Games as well, but like Peaty, they won in different events. Chalmers won the 200 free in a time of 1:45.56, while Scott reigned victorious in the 100 free, taking gold in 48.02. Masse reigned supreme in the 100 and 200 back, but was outtouched in the 50 by Australia’s Emily Seebohm.

Chad le Clos was denied the top of the podium in 2022, but has the deepest history with the event, having, like Peaty, won medals, the last time Glasgow hosted back in 2014, claiming victory in the 100 and 200 fly, events he also won in 2018. In fact, le Clos, who won 200 fly and 400 IM back in 2010, has a total of 18 Commonwealth medals and trails Emma McKeon by only two for the highest total in Games history.