Seven prospective Scotland team members exceeded the Commonwealth Games standard over the weekend. Hayley Haining, Derek Hawkins and Susan Partridge starred in London's marathon. James McLachlan and Jade Nimmo excelled in long jump events, while hammer thrower Mark Dry and 800m specialist Lynsey Sharp gave notice of their form. Haining, now 41, ran two hours, 36 minutes and 52 seconds in London and could yet become Scotland's oldest ever female athlete at a Commonwealth Games. Hawkins was the top British runner in the elite men's race. He ran 2:16:50 in only his second marathon. Maybe what happened in the countdown to London will happen in the run-up to Glasgow - and the home Games factor has an effect Partridge, from Oban, came ninth in a time of 2:30:46, which is a good enough time for a place at the World Championships in Moscow in August. "I am thrilled with ninth place. The best I have managed before at this kind of level is 17th so to be in the top 10 in the London Marathon feels special," she told scottishathletics. 'I was always very hopeful about the Glasgow 2014 standard, which is at 2:40:00, and hopefully I am pretty secure for that now." At the Mount Sac Relays in Walnut, California, McLachlan produced the second best long jump in Scottish athletics history and Dry gave the third-best hammer throw of his career. McLachlan's 7.86m pushed him into second place in the Scottish all-time list for the long jump behind record-holder Darren Ritchie and was well clear of the 7.60m that is the Glasgow 2014 standard. Dry, meanwhile, finished third in the elite hammer competition in California, with his best throw of 74.46m a long way beyond the 65m asked for the Glasgow games. And Sharp ran inside the required time in her first 800m run of the season. At Walnut her time of 2:02:63 landed her sixth place and was inside the Commonwealth Games standard of 2:02:80. She tweeted: 'Happy with my opener and great to be back in competition again.' Finally, in Florida, Nimmo leapt 6.31m to get inside the long jump standard of 6.20m. "Maybe what happened in the countdown to London will happen in the run-up to Glasgow - and the home Games factor has an effect,' said Partridge. "You are going to get people coming out of the woodwork, in a manner of speaking, and trying to come up with a performance which wins them a Scottish vest for a Commonwealth Games in Scotland. "We cannot possibly say Hayley Haining has 'come out of the woodwork' because she has been around for a number of years and has been such a good athlete. She was always liable to have a go at the Glasgow 2014 standard. "But I certainly do think the thought of the Games coming up will make people work harder in training and compete better. "I'm certainly hoping now that being nine minutes inside the women's marathon standard will mean I am in a good position but there's a long way to go until the selection periods close. "There is plenty of time for other people to run marathons."

Question: The @placeholder running Scottish athletics hopes Glasgow 's staging of the 2014 Commonwealth Games is already having a positive effect on the athletes .


The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh warned that being overweight may now be considered "the norm". It claimed a tax would help fund the "spiralling" healthcare costs associated with the problem. The British Soft Drinks Association (BSDA) insisted that the case is "not compelling". It cited research which suggested a 20% tax would save just four calories per day. Liverpool University chair of clinical epidemiology, Simon Capewell, is due to speak at a conference on the issue in Edinburgh later, entitled: "Obesity: A 21st Century Epidemic". Professor Capewell will cite Mexico as one example where a 10% sugary drinks tax is believed to have contributed to a 10% reduction in the consumption of such beverages while Finland, France, Hungary, Latvia and the USA have also introduced sugar taxes. He said: "The revenues raised can then be invested back into initiatives to increase children's health in these countries, as is happening in Mexico. "Scotland has an excellent track record in addressing public health issues. Notable achievements include smoke-free public places and proposals for minimum unit pricing for alcohol. We need to explore how these developments could be repeated with sugary drinks." Gavin Partington, BSDA director general, said: "The efforts by soft drinks companies including product reformulation, smaller pack sizes and increased promotion of low and no-calorie drinks have led to a 7% reduction in calories from soft drinks in the last three years. "It's also worth noting that politicians in Belgium and Denmark rejected the notion of a tax in 2013 and the experience in France shows that while sales of soft drinks initially fell after a tax was introduced in 2012, they have increased since."

Question: Doctors have called for the introduction of a tax on sugary @placeholder and drinks to tackle what they describe as an " obesity epidemic " .


German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, said: "I remain confident that we will find an agreement today on the payment of the latest tranche." Lenders are meeting on Thursday to discuss releasing as much as 8.5bn euros (Â£7.4bn) in funds to Greece. Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said he was "optimistic". Greece is facing billions of euros worth of debt repayments in July. Slovak Finance Minister Peter Kazimir said: "I really hope the Euclid will fly back home with a briefcase stuffed with money." Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will attend the meeting in Luxembourg. Germany, Europe's largest economy, is the biggest contributor to the rescue and its government has stipulated that in order for more money to be released to Greece, the IMF must join the bailout. However, in turn, the IMF wants clarity on longer term debt relief for Greece once the current funding scheme runs out next year. Jeroen Dijsselbloem, chairman of the Eurogroup, said: "Today we will give more clarity to Greece and to the IMF (on) how we will move forward, how we will calibrate debt relief needed next year. "There won't be a figure that rolls out... the figure will only come at the end of the programme," he said.

Question: Germany is confident that its struggling eurozone @placeholder Greece will secure the funding it needs to pay its bills .