A local girl has represented her dance school, the Margaret Rose School of Dance at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth games in Glasgow.
17-year-old Gabi Loughlin took part in the world-famous Commonwealth games opening ceremony last week on July 23.
The event took place within the well-known Glasgow arena, the OVO Hydro, with the capacity of around 13,000 spectators.
This event was well attended by a range of different people, such as new UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, King Charles and Queen Camilla, and Sir Chris Hoy.
This showcases the importance and excitement of the ceremony that Gabi and over 490 other people who performed on the Hydro stage experienced.
Gabi was selected through a nerve-wracking process, where she initially submitted an application for an audition.
Subsequently, the Scottish dancer participated in a two-hour-long audition before being selected to perform as part of the 2026 Commonwealth opening ceremony.
During the lead up to the event, Gabi took part in five hour rehearsals to ensure that she was ready for the unique opportunity.
At the end of her rehearsals, when the big day eventually arrived, Gabi had to arrive at the OVO Hydro five hours early previous to the performance.
This was to ensure that she could meet in advance with other teams, Sri Lanka and Singapore.
Gabi rounded up the whole experience by stating “I had an amazing experience, meeting so many new faces and athletes from all over the world. It was once in a lifetime opportunity which I’m
So happy to get the opportunity to do. I even got some pins from different countries and felt a sense of pride wearing my official uniform. I would encourage everyone to get into sport or dance as it has taken me all over the world and brought me so many exciting opportunities”
This event is a well deserved milestone in Gabi’s dancing career as she has been participating in the sport since she was three-years-old as her mother was a dance teacher, and continues to support Gabi and all of her achievements.
