Bowls icon Alex 'Tattie' Marshall aims for Commonwealth return alongside world champion niece Beth Riva

With a year to go to Glasgow 2026, Alex ‘Tattie’ Marshall is hoping to add to his record haul of five Commonwealth gold medals for Scotland by returning to the green next year – alongside his niece.

The athlete, who shot to prominence with two golds at the 2014 Games in Glasgow, is one of the biggest names in the sport but isn’t the only top bowler in the family.

Beth Riva was crowned world champion earlier this year, and she says it would be a dream to compete at the games alongside her uncle.

Riva was 11 when she watched Marshall’s triumph in Glasgow, and his iconic celebration, and credits that moment as the point where she set her own ambitions in the sport. She’s followed in her uncle’s footsteps to the top of the sport and knows the importance of the competition.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” she told STV. “I went both days to go and watch.

“Those two bowls against England in the semi-final of the pairs, it’ll never be done again, I don’t think.

“It was just the most surreal thing. Amazing to watch it and to be a part of it, even better. I look back with really good memories of that summer.

“I was bowling at that time, but I think watching that gave me even more of a boost as I thought ‘This is what you can do in the sport’.

“After that, it’s when I started playing in more competitions, and that was the catalyst.”

Marshall doesn’t tire of looking back at the competition that thrust him into the national consciousness and says the atmosphere on the green at Kelvingrove was something special.

“It’ll always be in my memory, to get two gold medals in your own backyard,” he said. “The crowd were absolutely magnificent.

“Those are two titles I’m never going to forget because it was in Scotland and you just can’t beat that.”

Anticipation is now building ahead of next year’s Games after it was confirmed that bowls will be part of the scaled-down event.

Marshall said: “I think it’s fantastic and I think every bowler was happy when they heard the news that bowls was going to be part of the Commonwealth Games. There was a little bit of doubt about it.

“I think Glasgow is buzzing already because 2014 was amazing and everybody did their job. The people of Glasgow got behind the team, and it was just so surreal, such a fantastic time.

“We’re only a year away and everybody is starting to get excited again.”

After an impressive World Indoor Championships where she reached the final of the women’s singles and won the mixed pairs with Jason Banks, Riva said that it would be the stuff of dreams to compete at Glasgow 2026.

Marshall, who watched on proudly as Riva became a world champion, says she’s progressed quickly and agrees it would be special to compete together. But he says it will be tougher than ever to represent Scotland.

“It would be a dream come true for us both to be in the Commonwealth Games,” he said.

“It’s going to be very difficult. It’s great that bowls are going to be part of it, but it’s a three-man team instead of five, so selections are going to be difficult.

“Let’s hope we can both play well up to selection in April and hopefully we can both be on the Scotland teamsheet.”