SWIMMER BANNED FROM 1986 GAMES WATCHES DAUGHTERS COMPETE

Annette Cowley Nel was prevented from competing in the 100m freestyle at the 1986 Commonwealth Games in Edinburgh after Games officials banned her on the eve of her race, citing residency rules. Police escorted her from the athletes' village. The swimmer, then aged 19 and a British citizen, had qualified as British champion and was considered a favourite for the gold medal. Four decades later, her twin daughters Georgia and Olivia Nel have been named in South Africa's swimming team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next month.

The 1986 Edinburgh Games took place amid significant political tension. Thirty-two nations from Africa, Asia and the Caribbean boycotted the event in opposition to UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's refusal to impose economic sanctions on South Africa over its apartheid policy. South African sports stars were barred from competing internationally because of the country's system of racial segregation. Cowley Nel, who had taken the opportunity to race for England through her mother's nationality, faced the same ban as fellow South African athlete Zola Budd, a runner who had competed for Great Britain at the 1984 Olympic Games.

Cowley Nel describes apartheid as "a terrible time" for South Africa and says she had advocated for equality. She believes developments in South Africa since then have been "extremely positive", though she remains frustrated that all South African athletes of that era were treated identically regardless of their personal positions on the political system. She said of her daughters' selection: "It is incredibly special that they have both made the Commonwealth Games" and described the prospect of watching them compete as "quite an emotional moment".