The Hampden Park, in the south of the city, is normally the seat of Scottish football.
The stadium — the sporting hub of the people of the area for long has undergone several changes, with its playing surface raised by 1.9 metres using metal stilts to accommodate a synthetic track — will be home to some of the biggest names of world athletics through the next week, as the stage is set for the showpiece track and field events which gets underway on Sunday.
Small wonder then that the fans are already agog with excitement, waiting for the likes of Usain Bolt, David Rudisha, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Sally Pearson and Valerie Adams to name a few.
Bolt and Fraser-Pryce will be seen in action only in the relays, but their very presence has added an aura to the Games.
The absence of a few stars, including Mo Farah, who earlier this week pulled out citing injury, is also certain to be felt, but overall, what holds promise is the quality that will mark the show here compared to the shallow field in New Delhi.
In men’s sprints Richard Thompson (Trinidad & Tobago), with a season’s best of 9.82s, should fancy his chances in the 100m against the Jamaican duo of Nickel Ashmeade (9.89s) and Kemar Bailey-Cole (10.03s) besides teammate Keston Bledman (10s).
The 200m could well be a one-horse race with Jamaican Warren Weir (season’s best: 19.82s), while in the 400m the man to beat would be Grenada’s Kirani James (SB: 43.74s), even though the list includes seven of the 15 world’s best sub-45 men in the fray.
In the distances, Kenyan dominance is expected as Rudisha (800m), Ronald Kweimoi (1500m), Caleb Nidiku (5000m), Josephat Bett Kipkoech (10000m), Jairus Birech (3000m steeplechase) and Eric Ndiema are likely to lead the way to a possible sweep.
British long jump Olympic champion Greg Rutherford looks a certainty to be the star at the pits, while there should be little trouble for Jamaica, led by Bolt himself in the 4x100m, in the two relays.
In the gruelling decathlon, the ones to watch out for would be Damian Warner (Canada) and South African Wiliem Coertzen.
Among women, the sprints competition will see Veronica Campbell-Brown pitted against teammate Michelle-Lee Ahye and Blessing Okagbare (Nigeria) in the 100m. Blessing, who has been entered in four events, is the favourite in the 200m as is Jamaican Novlene Williams-Hill in the 400m, Sally Pearson (100m hurdles) and Kaliese Spencer (400m hurdles).
Kenyans look to dominateThere will be no stopping the Kenyans in the distance races right from the 800m through to the marathon.
There is no reason to look beyond Eunice Sum in the 800m, Hellen Obiri (1500m), Mercy Cheromo (5000m), Florence Kiplagat (10000m), Milcash Chemos (3000m steeplechase) and Philes Ongori (marathon). In throws, Valerie Adams (New Zealand), the shot put icon, will attempt to extend her unbeaten streak of more than 50 in another international outing.
