Mixing politics and sport ahead of the ‘friendly games’

So, when a politician sits down and his choice of soft drink sparks a flurry of camera flashes, you know these Commonwealth Games are going to be a bit different, writes Channel 4 News sports producer Simon Stanleigh.

Sure enough, First minister Alex Salmond‘s first appearance on the Commonwealth Games official stage saw him glug Irn Bru with gusto, but every aspect of these games will have a kilt wrapped around it.

All eyes will be on Team Scotland‘s medalists. Will they use their moment of glory to promote independence or to plead with their country to remain in the union? Either way the first minister won’t let this opportunity slip – even though he said today he had a “self-denying ordinance” not to talk politics during the Games.

Today he reiterated his commitment to fund Scottish sport, but who can know what the discrepancy in elite athlete funding will be between English and Scottish athletes 10 or 15 years down the line? Indeed, many athletes may grow weary of political questions overshadowing their sporting achievements.

Perhaps Glasgow 2014’s biggest challenge is to keep the attention of the world on the athletes and the sport, and the political story in the background.

The Commonwealth Games are affectionately dubbed “the friendly games” – but any Scottish v English rivalry on the field of play is at risk of being viewed solely through the prism of the political back-story.

Alex Salmond has invested both financially and politically in the Games, and now he’s expecting some payback. But perhaps too much Scottish independence talk will sour proceedings, much like the sugar-free Irn Bru he was showing off.