The family of Madeleine McCann cheered on her younger brother Sean as he swam in the Commonwealth Games today, some two decades after she vanished.
Sean McCann took to the pool in Glasgow for the 400m freestyle heats this morning in his major competition debut.
His parents Kate and Gerry and twin sister Amelie looked on proudly as they cheered on the 21-year-old – and the rest of the Scotland team.
Kate donned a shirt emblazoned with the song title ‘Yes Sir, I Can Boogie’ – the song adopted by Scottish football fans.
Sean used the home crowd to perfection on Saturday, securing a place in the final tonight ahead of his other events later this week, the 800m and 1,500m freestyle.
‘Come on Sean!’ yelled Gerry, clasping his hands to his mouth, as his son lagged in seventh place at the first turn.
Gerry has family roots in Glasgow, meaning Sean was eligible to represent Scotland in these games, despite being born and raised in Leicestershire.
Over eight lengths in this East End pool, Sean pulled his way back up the field, showing a resilient determination to finish strongly in fourth place.
His time, three minutes 52.65 seconds, was the seventh fastest of the 400m freestyle heats.
After the race was over, Sean headed for the mixed zone to speak to the media, where the Scottish media manager made clear he would only answer questions about swimming.
Amelie, Kate and Gerry McCann in the stands cheering on their son and brother Sean McCann at today’s Commonwealth Games swimming heats
The family sat with other Scottish fans as they supported Sean at a home Commonwealth Games
Scotland’s Sean McCann competes in the Men’s 400m Freestyle heats during the swimming event at the Tollcross International Swimming Centre in Glasgow
Sean McCann of Scotland goes through his final preparations before the race
Sean McCann was seen warming up poolside before taking to the diving block
He is the younger brother of missing Madeleine McCann and was in the room when she was abducted from her family’s holiday villa in Portugal in 2007
How does it feel to qualify for the final, he was asked. ‘It wasn’t really an expectation coming in, especially with how strong the field was, but I’m delighted to see I’ve made it.
‘I wouldn’t say I felt the pressure, but certainly I was nervous with so many people watching and I wanted to do not only not well for myself, but also Team Scotland as well. I was definitely nervous, but glad I could produce a decent swim.’
Describing the race itself, he continued: ‘It was amazing. You could hear the crowd the whole way through the race and it just spurred me on to really give it my all down that last hundred.
‘I think the Olympics is always that step even further, so being able to represent Scotland here is a good stepping stone in the way to that. Hopefully, with a couple more years of work, I’ll put my name in the mix for the Olympics.’
Almost two decades on from the infamous Portugal family holiday which saw Madeleine abducted, the McCann family’s unimaginable tragedy still haunts Sean and his twin sister, Amelie, wherever they go.
But today, the family finally saw themselves talked about for a different reason as their son’s remarkable story takes centre-stage.
Sean’s mother Kate has previously told how he ‘hated’ the water when he was first taken swimming – and yet he soon found his drive, attending up to nine two-hour training sessions every week, many requiring 4am starts.
Inspired by his sporting family – Kate and father Gerry even went on a run on their first date – Sean’s dedication has paid off as he sets his sights on success in his first major international meet.
Sean came fourth in his heat and was cheered on today by both parents, as well as his sister Amelie, who herself competes regularly in triathlons.
The elite distance swimmer is eligible to represent Scotland through his father, who was born in Glasgow.
This week a former member of Sean’s coaching team told the Daily Mail that the combination of a young man who was ‘really driven and never one to take the easiest route’, and parents who willed him on, had made him a powerhouse and his story an inspiration.
In his teenage years Sean’s parents would ferry him to training sessions at Braunstone Leisure Centre, a 20-minute drive from the family home in Rothley, Leicestershire, where he would clock up eight or nine two-hour swim sessions a week, plus two or three punishing gym workouts.
Kate and Gerry ‘encouraged their children, but didn’t push them’ said the insider, who coached Sean as a youngster.
He remembered the young man being focused on the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad in 2023 and then deciding he wanted to race for Scotland and for GB in open-water events – so for swimming competitively he changed his nationality to Scottish.
‘For the Commonwealth Games, I was lucky enough to be at the trials in London when he was racing. It was great to watch him and talk to him between prep, to be a part of it and see his journey unfold,’ he said.
Sean gets ready poolside for his heat – it marks his first major international senior competition
Sean McCann, 21, after finishing fourth in his heat of the 400m freestyle – he will go later this week in the 800m and 1500m
McCann dives from the starting block at the beginning of his heat at the Tollcross International Swimming Centre
Amelie, Kate and Gerry McCann applaud as they watch the programme at Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games on Saturday morning
Amelie, Kate and Gerry McCann in the stands at Tollcross International Swimming Centre in Glasgow ahead of Sean’s heat on Saturday morning
The family were in the stands early on Saturday to support the rest of Britain’s swimmers before their son takes to the pool
For almost two decades Kate and Gerry McCann have been known as the parents of missing Madeleine, (bottom right) the toddler who disappeared on a family holiday to Praia da Luz, Portugal, in May 2007 – now the family will be known for something else
What a journey, too, for Sean, who is studying chemical engineering at Loughborough University – chosen for its unrivalled sports facilities.
Distance swimming is an unforgiving sport. Yet those who know Sean’s career describe a steady, determined progression, even during the pandemic lockdown when he would train out of the pool, at home with Amelie, who is also a keen swimmer.
In the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games, he reached the finals of the 400m and 1500m freestyle, and has since qualified for the European Open Water Championships representing Great Britain.
Sean himself said this week that he was ‘very excited’ about the challenges ahead. ‘It’s the pinnacle really – of representing Scotland in the Commonwealth Games, and especially at a home games.
‘I’ve got lots of family up in Glasgow so that makes it even more special. I was there in 2014 watching as a kid, so to make it now, 12 years later, is really a full circle moment.
‘It’s my first senior games, so I’m just looking forward to be representing Scotland and doing my absolute best. I always tend to go out quite slow and build my way into a race. That’s just how I like to pace it.’
It’s quite the change from what Sean has been known for by many until now, solely for his close proximity to Madeleine’s disappearance.
He was, after all, in the same room when she was abducted from the family’s holiday apartment in Praia da Luz in 2007 when he was just two.
Although he might not remember the international fallout, both siblings have grown up in the shadow of the mystery surrounding their older sister, who would now be 23.
The McCann parents have repeatedly spoken of their determination to ensure that Sean and his twin sister Amelie, who was also sat in the stands, could grow up with the most normal childhood possible.
‘Our worry is for our children,’ Kate said in 2017. ‘I think we’ve tried to educate them a little bit as well because obviously it’s not just us that has fallen victim to the downside of social media.
‘At some point you’ve got to realise that time is not frozen and I think both of us realise that we owed it to the twins to make sure that their life is as fulfilling as they deserve, and we have certainly tried our best to achieve that.’
Gerry also spoke about developing their independence. ‘I am certainly more protective than I was, but you can’t mollycoddle them,’ he said. ‘They have to be independent. There is increased anxiety but we can’t let that impact on them having a normal upbringing. Sean and Amelie are doing really really well; obviously they are not immune to the media, they hear things, they go to school, they hear the radio.’
For Sean, and by extension his whole family, this is his opportunity to step into the light of something new.