Commonwealth Games | Glasgow 2026

When 20‑year‑old Ava Lloyd makes it onto the 1500m start line at this summer’s Glasgow Commonwealth Games, it will feel like coming full circle. She was sat in the stands as an eight‑year‑old in 2014, cheering for her hero Jenny Meadows. It was the first major athletics championships she’d ever been to.

Now, twelve years later, Meadows – now a coach – is nurturing Ava’s talents.

“Putting on the Welsh vest and stepping on the start line would be a huge honour and it would fulfil a childhood dream to represent Wales and compete with the top 1500m women in the iconic Commonwealth mile event.”

She was first introduced to athletics at the age of 11 when she won a school cross country competition. It prompted her Mum to call up coach Trevor Painter – they had previously trained together at Wigan Harriers.

A key turning point came in 2019 when she won a silver medal at English Schools, running a pb and cementing her belief that this is where her future lay:

“The following years were pretty tough as I experienced a plateau, like so many other female athletes do when going through puberty, and I didn’t break my PB until 2022.”

But since then, the achievements have come through thick and fast. Proving that she is on the up as a Welsh athlete is a growing collection of top ten finishes at major events.

She was selected for the European Under 20 Championships in 2023 and for the World Under 20 Championships in 2024, where she placed fifth in the 1500m.

She made her senior debut appearance for GB at the European Indoors in 2025. And in the same year, she was also picked for the relay squad at the European Cross Country Championships, winning a bronze medal. At the same Championships, she finished 10^th in the 1500m

Random fun fact: she can solve a Rubik’s cube and was in a marching band when she was younger.

Social Media 

Instagram