THE Glasgow solution at Hampden once consisted of fortified wine and the contents of a variety of beer bottles.

That was in the days when terraces swayed in a dangerous cocktail of excitement and intoxication.

Now the Glasgow solution lies in front of a gathering of bucket seats. It refers to the installation of a running track that constitutes a world first. More than 6000 stilts and 1200 base panels form a deck that has been lifted almost two metres to consume some of the Hampden trackside. The specialist running surface will be laid next month. The work has cost £14m.

This innovative solution to providing an athletics arena inside a football stadium is likely to be copied worldwide. There is a global toast to this Glasgow solution.

The first tentative steps were made on the Tarmac yesterday. Hampden lay before a media army. The green sward where Baxter strutted, Johnstone jinked and Law struck resembled a very large roundabout.

The test drivers were of the highest class. Jessica Ennis-Hill, the London Olympic gold medallist in the heptathlon, and Eilidh Child, the Scot who won bronze in the 4x400 metres relay for Team GB at the recent World Championships, walked where hundreds of athletes will reach for gold in the summer.

Their reactions were considered but the headlines lay beyond the Hampden field. Ennis-Hill, a Glasgow 2014 ambassador, was inevitably asked about the referendum debate. "One team is a great way to go forward," said the Sheffield athlete.

The precise, complete quotes were not quite enough to make her the flag carrier for Better Together as she spoke of supporting Scottish athletes at the Commonwealth Games, adding that "it does not really change anything". Ennis-Hill may still find this morning that she is a politician as well as a pregnant gold medallist.

David Grevemberg, chief executive of Glasgow 2014, was also asked the mandatory Usain Bolt question. His reply should be headlined "mibbes aye, mibbes no" in tribute to Kenny Dalglish who graced the pitch below the news conference. Frankly, no-one outside Bolt's campaign know whether the Jamaican legend will come to Glasgow in the summer. "Bolt has made the right sounds," he offered. The decision, though, will almost certainly not be made until after his national championships in June.

The right sounds about capacity stadiums, world-class facilities and a welcome that would satisfy even the ego of the remarkable Bolt will have been transmitted to the Caribbean. He has six Olympic gold medals - and he seems to be auditioning for a place in the Jamaican football team - so he has both the history and the focus on a future. It is hoped that this includes a visit to Hampden without a ball at his feet but Grevemberg could glance at the stadium yesterday and know that a spare ticket for the athletics is as rare as a Scottish footballer at a World Cup final.

There are, though, hopes of Caledonian success at Hampden. Ennis-Hill, who confirmed her baby is due in July, said she would be at home supporting the home teams, though she added more frankly: "I will be in a whole heap of pain."

She fully expects to cheer Child, her room-mate at the London Olympics, home in the 400m hurdles. "I am a bit biased but I think Eilidh will be one of the stars," she said.

Child yesterday felt the excitement of stepping out into a stadium that she has only previously visited as a Hearts supporter. She and Laura Muir, rated third in the world at 800m, will be the focus of home hopes. "There is definitely much more attention on us. I try not to see it as expectation or pressure but as extra support," said Child.

The most obvious change to Hampden is that the track now extends to within touching distance of the spectators. "As soon as I stepped down on to it I felt the football stadium was disappearing and it was now becoming an athletics stadium," said Child. "The crowd will be right at trackside and that will be a real benefit to the home athletes, having that crowd right there cheering you on the whole way round."

The meaning of the Glasgow solution may have altered. The interior of a stadium has changed. The Hampden roar remains.