Sean McCann, the younger brother of missing child Madeleine McCann, qualified for the 400m freestyle final at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Saturday. He finished fourth in his morning heat and entered the final as the last of the eight qualifiers, in what is his first major championships.
His parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, were in the stands at the Tollcross Swimming Centre to watch. The home crowd gave him vocal support throughout the race. "I am buzzing," McCann said afterward. "It wasn't really an expectation coming in given how strong the field was but delighted to see I have made it."
McCann, who studies chemical engineering at Loughborough University, grew up in England but qualifies for Scotland through his father. He said the crowd's noise carried through the water. "I could hear them the whole way through the race. It just spurred me on to just give it my all down that last 100m," he said. "I wouldn't say I was nervous but I certainly felt the pressure with so many people watching. I wanted to do well not only for myself but for Team Scotland as well."
McCann and his twin sister, who was also in the crowd in Glasgow, were two years old when Madeleine, then three, disappeared during a family holiday in Praia Da Luz, Portugal, in 2007. The case remains one of the world's most high-profile missing-person investigations and is still being handled by London's Metropolitan Police.
According to the BBC, the final field includes Australia's 2023 world champion Sam Short, Northern Ireland's 800m Olympic champion Daniel Wiffen, and defending champion Elijah Winnington. England's James Guy and Northern Ireland's Jack McMillan are also medal contenders.
McCann has been part of the Scottish Swimming programme since his teens. Earlier this year he finished third in the 800m freestyle and fourth in the 1500m at the British Championships. He will also compete in the 800m and 1500m freestyle events later in the meet. He previously represented Scotland at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago and raced for Great Britain at the 2025 European Open Water Championships in Croatia.
His longer-term goal is the Olympics. "The Olympics is always that step even further," he said. "Being able to represent Scotland is a good stepping stone on the way to that. Hopefully a couple more years work I will be in the mix for the Olympics."
The final was scheduled for 19:07 BST on Saturday.
