Garioch judoka Andrew McWatt has had some handy advice on his late Commonwealth Games call-up – from his brother and fellow athlete Stuart.
Andrew was a last-minute addition to the Team Scotland squad this week, getting the nod to compete in the 100kg category at Birmingham 2022 after Chris Sherrington was unable to recover in time from ACL surgery.
Stuart had hoped to compete at the Games himself, but he damaged his cruciate ligament for the third time earlier this year. Instead, he will find himself on commentary duties during the judo, but will get some time off to watch his younger brother fight.
It promises to be a special moment for the McWatt family, with their father Stuart senior and youngest sibling Ross – himself a talented judoka – also making it to Birmingham to watch.
“It’s really good for Andrew to be selected,” said Stuart. “It’s a good opportunity for him and there’s no pressure, as it’s his first multi-sport event.
“When he showed me all the kit, I was a bit jealous, but I will be fully supporting him. I’m working for British Judo during the Games so I will be there.
“I told him that, because it was a last-minute selection, he could just go and fight and enjoy the athletes’ village. There’s not many opportunities to do things like this, to fight for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“My dad is coming down with Judo Scotland and it will be good for Andrew to have him in the crowd. Our youngest brother Ross fought in the Cadet Europeans a few weeks ago and has been down training with us, too.”
Andrew has picked up two seventh-placed finishes this year in European Cup events, in Sarajevo and Dubrovnik respectively. The judo will take place at the Coventry Arena from August 1-3.
Stuart is currently recovering from his third ACL operation, with a targeted return of early 2023. He had only returned to competition in February after shoulder surgery.
He has undergone a unique procedure to repair the knee again and it has not diminished his ambitions of qualifying for the Paris Olympics.
“I had surgery about eight weeks ago,” added Stuart. “This time they couldn’t use a hamstring graft, as they had done that before. So now I have a donor ligament in my knee.
“It happened at a competition in February. The boy has turned in against me and I felt my knee pop. I carried on fighting a few more competitions before we realised the extent of it.
“Rehab is boring, put it that way. I’m hoping to be back competing by the start of next year. I’ve been through it a few times now and you just crack on.
“I’ve got Paris in my sights and I’ll do everything to try qualify for that. I’ll still have a year’s qualification period and I’ll go hell for leather at it and see what happens.”
