Dancing in the streets of Dunblane: Contested identities in elite Scottish sport

The year 2014 marks an important time for Scotland when a referendum takes place to decide on whether it should be an independent country. This is the year of Homecoming (a year-long series of events designed to attract international tourists), and the nation also hosts two of the biggest sporting events in the world (the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup). Two years ago a number of Scottish athletes formed a part of Team GB as something of a media vortex engulfed a ‘home’ Olympic Games and promoted a popular celebration of Britishness. The Scottish tennis player Andy Murray was a central figure in that summer of sport and became a contested site for the (re)claiming of a national hero. This then clearly offers a timely moment to reflect upon the complex interplay between Scottish and British identities. In this short article I attempt to unwrap some of the key issues around crisis and conflict within elite sport within a particular locale, and try to tease out some of the ways in which these mediated identities reshape our understanding of the nations.