Glasgow closes 23rd Commonwealth Games at OVO Hydro, hands over to Ahmedabad

Glasgow’s OVO Hydro hosted the closing ceremony of the 23rd Commonwealth Games on Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, bringing the 11-day event to an end.

Poet Jackie Kay read a filmed love letter to the city during the ceremony, asking, “....What is Glasgow if not a place of welcome to the citizens of the world?” Video montages of residents at the city’s landmarks accompanied the poem as organisers and commentators reflected on Glasgow’s hospitality, warmth, kindness and organisation across the Games.

The ceremonial transfer of the Commonwealth Games flag and baton saw Olympic and World champion Neeraj Chopra and Indian Olympic Association president P. T. Usha receive the symbols alongside Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, with the moment accompanied by the voice of Scottish singer Shereen Cutkelvin to symbolically pass the event on to Ahmedabad.

India’s cultural presentation, titled ‘The World is One Family: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, marked the handover segment and referenced the 150th anniversary of the national song Vande Mataram. The sequence was led by actress and former Miss World Manushi Chhillar, featured a musical score by Shankar Mahadevan and choreography by Shiamak Davar and his troupe, and prompted an enthusiastic response from the Indian audience in the arena.

Performers in the Indian segment included Shankar Mahadevan’s sons Shivam and Siddharth and playback singer Bhoomi Trivedi, who joined to bolster the musical numbers, while sitarist and singer Rishab Rikhiram Sharma also performed with other artistes during the ceremony.

Earlier elements of the show opened with singer-songwriter Sandi Thom performing ‘Proud to Be From Scotland’ with the tribal drum band Clann An Drumma, and volunteers carrying the flags of the 74 participating nations and territories entered the arena. Australian singer Delta Goodrem delivered a medley and a rendition of ‘Warrior’, later inviting Scottish singer Cammy Barnes to join her for John Farnham’s ‘You’re the Voice’ backed by a choir and traditional pipers; Primal Scream’s ‘Loaded’ was reworked with bagpipers, community performers and Glaswegian-Nigerian rapper Bemz, followed by the reading of Jackie Kay’s poem and a set from electro-trad band Elephant Sessions with poet-musician Hamish Kiernan-Hutcheson.

Scotland’s para-athlete Melanie Woods received the David Dixon Award, "presented to the outstanding athlete of the Commonwealth Games in recognition of excellence in performance, fair play and overall contribution to her team’s campaign." The closing ceremony combined Scotland’s music, culture and heritage with India’s traditions, centring themes of unity, friendship and hospitality.

The Games were formally handed over to Ahmedabad, which will host the 2030 (centenary) Commonwealth Games.