Athlete Juliet inspired by Glasgow 2014 experience

Juliet Gold (18) was one of the Clydesider volunteers who worked at the track and field events at Glasgow 2014.

As a designated kit carrier, she was fortunate enough to wait on Olympic champion Usain Bolt during his appearance at the Games.

She even received a ‘fist-bump’ with the world’s fastest man, which made national headlines.

However, for Juliet her experience of the Games has only served to make her more determined to compete at the event herself in either four or eight years’ time.

She said: “I’ve always wanted to be involved in athletics and the experience of Glasgow 2014 has been inspirational.

“We’ll just have to see what will happen but, hopefully, I’ll be back on those tracks as an athlete in the near future.”

Though she met a handful of premier athletes throughout the competition, undoubtedly the stand-out moment for Juliet was her encounter with Bolt.

“He is a bit of a character for sure,” she said. “He was very relaxed and chatty, whereas a lot of other athletes are stressing out trying to prepare for their race.

“I think it was just another race for him and he just makes it look so easy.

“He was joking with me about not running off with his leg numbers; it was really fun.”

She added: “I was also the kit carrier for Brianne Theisen-Eaton, the heptathlon winner, when she was running the 400m hurdles.

“She is really nice too; she was telling me how cold Scotland was and that she didn’t want to take her gear off.”

The Games have certainly been eventful for Juliet, as she was also nominated to carry the Queen’s Baton through Kirkintilloch before taking on the role of Clydesider.

She said: “It’s been exhausting, but amazing. I’ve definitely gotten the most I could out of the Games.

“I’m quite gutted it’s over now but at least I can get a seat on the train, without queuing for ages.

“I think over the next few weeks, as things start to go back to normal, that we’ll see a lot more people coming out to try new sports.

“Hopefully, it’ll stick for a few of them and Glasgow 2014 can leave its lasting effect on a lot of people.”