Stephen Clegg had a nickname for the cameras at the Tollcross swimming centre. "He likes to call me Mariah Cleggy," the Scottish swimmer told BBC Sport Scotland. And on Tuesday evening, the 30-year-old certainly brought the drama — roaring to an unexpected gold in the 50-meter freestyle S14 at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
It was a win nobody saw coming. After double Paralympic gold in Paris just a year earlier, Clegg had needed surgery to fix a growth inside his shoulder — a bit of bone shaving, as he put it. Nothing life-threatening, but the physical and mental toll had lingered. Heading into these Games, he admits he wasn't sure a gold was even realistic.
"I was prepared to not win gold," Clegg said. "But I think I swam beyond myself today."
He certainly did. Clegg blazed through the water in 24.73 seconds — half a second faster than he'd managed all season. The time also upgraded the silver he earned at the last Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, achieved when he was four years younger and in much better physical shape.
The victory was especially sweet for a family built around swimming. Clegg grew up in Newcastleton, a small town in the Scottish Borders, alongside sister Libby — a double Paralympic champion — and older brother James, who competed in the same race and finished tied fourth. All three siblings live with stargardt macular dystrophy, a condition that affects their vision.
"The gold in Paris was special because it was a really tough journey to get there," Clegg said. "But this has been more challenging in some ways."
His coach had a quirky comparison ready before the race: "My coach said something a bit silly earlier, which was that Lionel Messi only shows up for the World Cup — that my experience allows me to step up for these big moments when all season I've been swimming a bit crap."
All that emotion hit Clegg hard on the podium. As the national anthem played, he struggled to hold it together, his lip trembling and his eyes filling with tears. He had even missed his sister Libby's wedding to be here.
"I'm a very emotional person, but I don't really let them out very often," he said. "For me to show that emotion kind of speaks louder than words. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Nothing in my career can really match that moment. Even winning gold at Paris."