IN summer last year a team of 12 athletes travelled to Glasgow from the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu.

It was a part of the world few people had heard of but just a few months later the beautiful country would find itself in the global media spotlight.

The trip to Scotland marked the ninth time a team from Vanuatu had competed in the Commonwealth Games - sadly without ever picking up a medal.

But they played their part in the battle for gold, silver and bronze in both the judo and table tennis competitions and won a legion of Scottish fans in the process.

Like the 7000 other sportsmen and women and officials who came to Glasgow, they stayed in the newly built Athletes' Village on the banks of the Clyde.

And this weekend, the three properties which were their homes during their stay in Scotland, were handed over to their new owners.

The Vanuatu athletes returned home leaving their new friends behind them.

Little did they know that the world would rally round when their national was hit by Cyclone Pam, described by Oxfam as one of the worst cyclones ever seen in the Pacific region.

At least eight people were killed by the storm and thousands of people have lost their homes and belongings.

As a result, City Legacy - the developer of the Athletes' Village - has announced it is to donate £5000 to Oxfam's emergency response fund to help stricken residents.

Spokesman Ed Monaghan said: "Vanuatu is part of the Commonwealth family and is part of the Athletes' Village family.

"We have all been touched by the images we have seen on TV. Around 90% of the houses in the nation's capital have been damaged and destroyed and people have lost their lives, their livelihoods as well as their homes.

"We hope this donation will help with the overall efforts to provide for those impacted by these terrible events."

Last July, City Legacy donated funds to the Kip Keino Foundation in Kenya to help with the provision of shelter, healthcare and quality education for hundreds of young Kenyan orphans and aspiring athletes.

A cheque for £10,000 was presented to Olympic and Commonwealth middle distance running champions, Kep Keino who founded the Foundation.