Emma Finucane has spent much of the past two years learning how to live with expectation. In Glasgow, she discovered how to thrive under it.
The Welsh cyclist became the first rider in 96 years to complete a Commonwealth Games sprint clean sweep, winning gold in the time trial, sprint, team sprint and keirin.
After winning three medals at Paris 2024, Finucane returned home as one of the most recognisable figures in Olympic sport. With that status came a new challenge, the knowledge that every rival wanted to beat her.
“After Paris, I definitely felt like I had a target on my back,” she said. “But I’ve learned to embrace that.”
In the keirin final, she took the unusual decision to move to the front with two laps remaining, exposing herself to the slipstream of the riders behind her. It was a calculated risk that could have left her vulnerable in the closing stages, but she controlled the race from the front and secured the fourth gold medal of a remarkable Games.
“I did feel the pressure, of course, especially with people talking about history and what could be achieved,” she said. “But as an athlete, you don’t really think about that in the moment. You’re just in your own bubble, focused on the next race.”
Finucane’s achievement also secured her a place in Welsh sporting history. She became the first Welsh woman to win four gold medals at a single Commonwealth Games, moving beyond para-sprinter Olivia Breen’s record as Wales’ most successful female athlete at the event.
“I just hope I’ve inspired people back home to get on a bike or into a velodrome,” she added.