Bermuda’s elite athletes from past and present are reeling from the news that their sports have been removed from the Commonwealth Games.

While Dame Flora Duffy has already expressed her disappointment at the decision to ditch triathlon, the news that road cycling, diving and squash will also not feature has left today’s stars contemplating their futures and former greats concerned that younger athletes will not get the same opportunities they had to shine.

Kaden Hopkins competed at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham in 2022 and entertained hopes of an outside chance of winning a medal in two years’ time, but those dreams have been dashed.

“It takes away our shot at winning something and it’s such a shame,” Hopkins said.

“Last time I was eleventh in the time-trial and fourteenth in the road race, and I would have improved on that, as since those Games I’ve developed as an athlete and learnt a lot.

“I was really looking forward to it and I’m desperately disappointed to hear that news. It’s crazy to me that this event is now on such a small scale and I guess I now just have to wait for the next cycle to see if it is in the next one.”

Hopkins loves to compete for his country and is travelling to Guyana to represent Bermuda at the Caribbean Championships in a couple of weeks, but the absence of the Commonwealth Games on his horizon leaves a huge gap in his focus.

“All of us cyclists — Conor [White], Nic [Narraway] and I — have teams that we race for; we will just have to concentrate on cycling outside the national team, which is really disappointing,” Hopkins said.

“The Commonwealth Games is the second-biggest event in the Olympic cycle. The Pan Am Games is also big, but in terms of the countries that go and the level of competition, Commonwealth Games is basically as big as it gets other than the Olympics.

“I just hope that it will be in next time, as it is just a great spectacle and for cyclists it is one of the most prestigious things that you can medal at.”

Micah Franklin competed for Bermuda in squash at two Commonwealth Games and was one of the island’s flag bearers in Glasgow in 2014. Now head of squash at the Bermuda Squash Racquets Association, he fears that young athletes may not get the chance to fulfil their potential.

“For years, squash at the Commonwealth Games was our pinnacle, at least here in Bermuda,” Franklin said.

“One of my greatest memories and accomplishments was being the flag bearer for Bermuda in Glasgow at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. That and the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games were two of the greatest moments in my career. To have some of my players now not be able to have those experiences themselves is a huge shame.”

Those involved with squash were recently on a high after the sport was revealed to be featuring at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and, while Franklin has no fears over the future for the game, he wonders if the Commonwealth Games may be on its last legs.

“Am I disappointed for squash to be cut? Yes, but I am probably more concerned about the state of the Commonwealth Games as a whole than I am of the sport,” Franklin said.

“We are finally making really positive strides with squash being in the 2028 LA Olympics. That was a huge accomplishment, but to now hear that we have been stripped from the Commonwealth Games is disappointing.

“It’s difficult to say for sure if we would have been [represented] in Glasgow, but I would have made a big push to get some of our players there.

“Taylor Carrick is playing full time on the tour and pursuing his aim to be professional, so I would have made a push for someone like him. Emma [Keane], who represented Bermuda in Birmingham, is still playing squash regularly in the UK and she would have liked to have had another go.

“Whether or not they would have made it, who knows, but I would have liked the opportunity to try.”

Triathlete Tyler Smith competed in Birmingham in 2022 alongside Duffy, Tyler Butterfield and Erica Hawley, and he is struggling to understand the Commonwealth Games Federation’s sports selection policy, with bowls and 3x3 basketball favoured over more popular pastimes.

“This is something that definitely hurts our sport and it was so disappointing to see the news that triathlon had been taken off the Commonwealth programme,” Smith said.

“Everyone is talking about the modernisation of these major festivals, so it’s a disappointing decision to see triathlon, a sport that is trying to be innovative with mixed-team relays, removed.

“The continued inclusion of sport like bowls is strange and even 3x3 basketball, which has an entire league and outlet to showcase itself, which triathlon doesn’t have.

“The Commonwealth is a strong group of triathlon countries with Britain, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and Bermuda, but also you have representation from all continents.

“We were hoping it would be kept in and it’s disappointing that it’s not. It’s a great development opportunity for smaller countries to get that exposure to international level of competition, but that has now been taken away so it’s making it more difficult for small countries — ones who perhaps are not going to get to the Olympics — to develop in our sport.

“For me, Birmingham was a career highlight and we had a ton of Bermudians making the trip over there. It was so special and it’s a shame that I, or any other Bermudians, will not get that experience in 2026.”

Fellow triathlete Butterfield competed at multiple Commonwealth Games and is hoping that Bermuda can still muster a competitive squad despite the absence of traditionally strong island sports.

“You just hope for the Commonwealth Games that they get the Games to happen and that Bermuda has a good team,” he said.

“There’s always things underneath, but it’s a shame for triathlon and a lot of people will be disappointed because we have a strong team. There were four of us last time and we all did well.

“It’s always a shame when there are less options and these Games are always stepping stones to the Olympics for Bermuda athletes and younger ones underneath. It’s nice for them to have different levels to aim for. Hopefully, triathlon gets back in for 2030. It’s disappointing, but you have to move on and change your goals.”

While the loss of diving will not affect any aspiring athletes in Glasgow, Katura Horton-Perinchief, who reached finals at two Commonwealth Games, says it is “disheartening” that only swimming remains of the four aquatic sports from Birmingham.

“It’s always a shame when diving is not included in a sports schedule,” Horton-Perinchief said.

“I’m an aquatic sports fan anyway and the fact we are only going to get swimming out of the four sports is disheartening.

“To be fair to Glasgow, they had to come out of the woodwork after [Victoria] Australia pulled out, so I am certain they are doing the best that they can at this late date — and we are less than two years out. It’s a shame and I wish it wasn't the case, but there is no doubt in my mind that they are doing the best they can at the organising committee.”

Horton-Perinchief, who is chair of the standards committee at the Bermuda Olympic Association and was chef de mission at the Olympic Games in Paris, is particularly disappointed with the removal of sports given the island’s recent success at the Commonwealth Games.

“The unfortunate thing is that we have had much success at the Commonwealth Games of late, with medals from Flora Duffy and Jah-Nhai Perinchief,” Horton-Perinchief said.

“It’s heartbreaking, especially when the Commonwealth Games has the opportunity to be a young athlete’s way to get their feet wet in international sport without getting thrown to the sharks at the Olympic Games right off the bat.

“Any opportunity to represent Bermuda and walk into a stadium behind our flag as an athlete is an incredible opportunity, and it's a shame that our athletes are not getting every single opportunity to do that. The Commonwealth Games is a great starting point for young athletes; now we're going to have to pivot a little.”