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Women rule the roost in Games pool gold rush

SWIMMING

Campbell storms home in medley, men take silver

Cate Campbell produced a blistering final freestyle leg to bring Australia home in the 4 x 100 m medley relay on the last night of swimming at the Commonwealth Games.

Their relay gold medal was Australia’s 19th in the pool, in which Australia won a remarkable 57 medals, including 21 silver and 17 bronze.

Of those, 10 were won by the women and nine by the men.

Australia’s haul more than doubled that of its next rival, England, which won 56. Canada was next with 11.

Australia maintained its narrow lead over England on the overall medal table, with 34 golds and 101 medals in total, to England’s 33, and 93 in total. 

The relay team of Campbell, Emily Seebohm, Lorna Tonks and Emma KcKeon was pushed for the entire race by England, who led at various stages before Campbell produced an amazing 51.59 final leg.

“I really just relaxed into that and had a great time with these girls,” said a typically understated Campbell.

The medley relay team strikes a 'Charlie's Angels' pose on the podium. Photo: Getty

The medley relay team strikes a ‘Charlie’s Angels’ pose on the podium. Photo: Getty

The men’s event followed a similar pattern, except that England’s lead by the end of the third butterfly leg was greater than the one that confronted Campbell.

Like Campbell, James Magnussen produced a mighty effort in the freestyle leg, but it was not enough to overhaul the English team. Magnussen and teammates Mitch Larkin, Christian Sprenger and Jayden Hadler finished with silver.

“I gave everything I had for the team,” said Magnussen.

Tranter upsets locals in individual medley

Australia’s Daniel Tranter has claimed gold in the men’s 200m individual medley at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games on Tuesday night.

Fastest qualifier Tranter, 22, clocked a Games record one minute 57.83 seconds, ahead of Scotland’s Daniel Wallace (1:58.72) and South Africa’s Chad le Clos (1:58.85).

Australia’s Thomas Fraser-Holmes was fourth (1:58.86).

Daniel Tranter shows his delight at winning the 200 m individual medley. Photo: Getty

Daniel Tranter shows his delight at winning the 200 m individual medley. Photo: Getty

Canada takes 1500 m

Australia’s Mack Horton has claimed silver in the men’s 1500m freestyle.

Canada’s London Olympic silver medallist Ryan Cochrane clocked 14 minutes, 44.03 seconds ahead of Horton (14:48.76 PB) and Wales’ Daniel Jervis (14:55.33).

Australia’s Jordan Harrison (14:55.71) was just piped for fourth.

England wins sprint battle

Cameron McEvoy won silver while James Magnussen took bronze in the men’s 50m freestyle.

McEvoy picked up his third silver of the Games, finishing in 22.00, just ahead of 100m gold medallist Magnussen in 22.10.

England’s Ben Proud was the only swimmer to go under 22 seconds, edging the field in a time of 21.92.

Matt Abood just missed the medals, finishing 0.04 of a second behind Magnussen for fourth.

Bronte Barratt opened Australia’s account on the last day in the pool by claiming bronze in the 400m freestyle.

Barratt came home in a time of 4:06.02 to finish behind New Zealand’s Lauren Boyle, who won with a new Games record with a 4:04.47, and Wales’s Jazz Carlin (4:05.16).

17-year-old Remy Fairweather finished sixth in 4:07.65.

Emily Seebohm was unable to back up her 100m backstroke gold, just missing the medals in the women’s 50m.

Welshwoman Georgia Davies took gold in 27.56 ahead of Lauren Quigley (27.69) and Brooklynn Snodgrass (27.97).

Gold medal winner Ben Proud of England after conquering Cameron McEvoy (L) and James Magnussen in the sprint.

Gold medal winner Ben Proud of England after conquering Cameron McEvoy (L) and James Magnussen in the sprint.

ATHLETICS

Hurdler stars (and it’s not Pearson)

Australian Nicholas Hough produced Australia’s finest performance on the track so far with a fourth placing in the 110 m hurdles.

He threw to the line after a superb race, but just missed out on a medal. The event was won by Andrew Riley of Jamaica, from England’s William Sharman and Shane Brathwaite of Barbados.

Nicholas Hough (far right) comes fourth in the 100 m hurdles. Photo: Getty

Nicholas Hough (far right) comes fourth in the 100 m hurdles. Photo: Getty

Heartbreak for Solomon

Australian Steve Solomon suffered another hamstring injury midway through his 400m semi-final at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

Solomon looked in good shape in the early stages of the race, only to pull up abruptly at the start of the final bend clutching his left hamstring.

The London Olympics finalist came into the Games under something of a cloud, having not race in almost two months.

But the 21-year-old insisted he was over an unspecified hamstring complaint and ready to run fast.

Solomon’s injury is also a major blow to Australia’s medal hopes in the 4x400m relay, an event where they have won gold at the past two Commonwealth Games.

Triple jump

The women’s triple jump was won by Kimberly Williams of Jamaica. Australians Linda Everton and Ellen Pettitt came fifth and sixth respectively.

High drama in the 10 km

The women’s 10 km was a trifecta to Kenya, with Joyce Chepkirui prevailing over compatriots Florence Kiplagat and Emily Chebet. In a stunning finish, Chepkirui won narrowly from Kiplagat, who fell at the line.

Joyce Chepkirui of Kenya (R) crosses the line to win gold ahead of Florence Kiplagat. Photo: Getty

Joyce Chepkirui of Kenya (R) crosses the line to win gold ahead of Florence Kiplagat. Photo: Getty

Trifecta to Jamaica

The Jamaicans finished 1-2-3 in the 400 m final, won by Stephanie McPherson from Novlene Williams-Mills and Chrstine Day.

SHOOTING

Two more shooting gold

Australia’s shooting team took its Glasgow gold medal haul to six with victories to Adam Vella and David Chapman overnight.

Vella won the men’s single trap, while Chapman took out the men’s 25m rapid pistol event.

It has been stunning turnaround for the team, which took home just three gold medals four years ago.

“We didn’t go so well in Delhi so it’s good that we stepped up and all the training has paid off,” says Vella.

“The coaching staff have been right behind us and that’s what we train all the time for. It’s a great achievement for the whole shooting team.”

The 43-year-old Victorian hit 11 of 15 targets to win the shoot-off for gold from England’s Aaron Heading, who hit nine. He says the conditions were challenging.

“The wind sort of caught me off guard a little bit,” he said.

“I had to rethink how I was going to attack the targets. My game plan was to get straight into them, because if you let them go they start to dance around a little bit.”

India’s Manavjit Sandhu beat Australian veteran Michael Diamond in the bronze-medal shoot-off.

Adam Vella after winning the trap final. Photo: Getty

Adam Vella after winning the trap final. Photo: Getty

David Chapman claimed his first Games gold medal at his third time of trying.

He says it is reward for the countless hours of training he has devoted to the sport.

“As a part-time athlete, comparing myself to the full-time swimmers and so forth, I’m so privileged to now be in the same category as a gold medallist,” he said.

The 49-year-old set a new finals record by hitting 23 of 40 targets, to win gold from India’s Harpreet Singh (21) and England’s Kristian Callaghan (17).

Chapman and his daughter Hayley had already made history at these Games by being the first father-daughter combination to represent Australia in the sport.

“It’s been awesome to represent my country with another family member,” he said.

“It’s been a great family experience, it’s just been really special.”

David Chapman, 49, won gold in his third Commonwealth Games attempt.

David Chapman, 49, won gold in his third Commonwealth Games attempt.

GYMNASTICS

Team silver

Australia won silver in the women’s team artistic gymnastics.

The Australian team of Lauren Mitchell, Olivia Vivian, Mary Anne Monckton, Larissa Miller and Georgia Rose Brown could not match England in their gold-medal face-off

The gold-medal-winning team of Becky Downie, Hannah Whelan, Ruby Harrold, Claudia Fragapane and Kelly Simm finished with a total of 167.555 to edge Australia’s 161.646.

The Canadians missed the medals as they lost their battle with the Welsh team, which posted 160.095.

Earlier, Louis Smith, Sam Oldham, Kristian Thomas, Max Whitlock and Nile Wilson won the men’s title for England ahead of Scotland.

Georgia Rose Brown of Australia competes on the beam during the women's team event.

Georgia Rose Brown of Australia competes on the beam during the women’s team event.

MOUNTAIN BIKING

A pair of bronzes

Australia picked up a pair of bronze medals in the mountain biking.

Rebecca Henderson came third in the women’s event, in which Canadians Catharine Pendrel and Emily Batty took second and third respectively.

Daniel McConnell took bronze in the men’s event, which was dominated by New Zealanders. Kiwi Anton Cooper won the event from compatriot Sam Gaze.

Rebecca Henderson on her way to bronze in the women's mountain biking. Photo: Getty

Rebecca Henderson on her way to bronze in the women’s mountain biking. Photo: Getty

WEIGHTLIFTING

Missed – by that much

Simplice Ribouem won silver in the men’s 94kg weightlifting at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, but he came about as close to a gold medal as is humanly possible.

The Cameroon-born Australian lifter finished with the same aggregate weight of 349 kilograms as Papua New Guinean gold medallist Steven Kukuna Kari but, as he weighs slightly less, had to settle for second place.

Ribouem, who won gold in in the 85kg class at the 2010 Delhi Games, lifted 153 kilograms in the snatch, topping Kari’s 149.

His 196 kilograms in the clean and jerk, on the other hand, was four kilograms less than Kari’s mark, and he failed on his final attempt at 201 kilograms.

India’s Chandrakant Mali won bronze with a total weight of 338 kilograms (150kg snatch, 188kg clean and jerk).

Gold medallist Kari Steven Kukuna of Papua New Guinea (R) jokes with silver medallist Ribouem Simplice of Australia. Photo: Getty

Gold medallist Kari Steven Kukuna of Papua New Guinea (R) jokes with silver medallist Ribouem Simplice of Australia. Photo: Getty

BOXING

Medals guaranteed

Boxers Joe Goodall and Andrew Moloney have guaranteed themselves medals in Glasgow, with only the colour still to be determined.

The Australians scored unanimous points decisions in their respective quarter-finals overnight.

“It wasn’t too tough a fight, but it wasn’t too easy either,” Goodall said after defeating Kieshno Major of the Bahamas in the men’s super heavyweight division.

“You have to work to make these scores convincing, so that’s what I did.”

Goodall used his superior reach and range to good effect.

“I was pumping the jab. He was a shorter fighter so I was just exploiting that,” he said.

The 22-year-old Queenslander looked to have the bout wrapped up by the end of the second round, allowing him to save energy nearing the final bell.

“I was conserving myself, but still fighting,” he said.

“You don’t want to run away and have everyone booing, but you do have to be mindful that you could get a cut or have a head clash. You have to play it safe sometimes if you’re ahead.”

He says a safety first approach has become even more important under the new rules removing the use of protective headgear for male fighters.

“You just have to adapt to the rules and you really have to box smart without headgear because there’s a lot of other things that can go wrong.”

Goodall will have a day off before facing Nigeria’s Efe Ajagba for a place in the gold-medal bout.

Andrew Moloney of Australia (R) after winning against Ruairi Dalton in the men's 52kg quarter final. Photo: Getty

Andrew Moloney of Australia (R) after winning against Ruairi Dalton in the men’s 52kg quarter final. Photo: Getty

Victorian fighter Andrew Moloney will have a parochial home crowd against him when he takes on Scottish teenager Reece McFadden in the men’s flyweight semis.

23-year-old Moloney says he has plenty of experience against the 19-year-old.

“We did quite a bit of sparring in the lead-up to these Games,” he said.

“I know what he’s like and I know if I box my best I can get the win.”

Moloney insists he still has scope for improvement, although his quarter-final performance against Ruairi Dalton could hardly have been more impressive.

He dominated from the opening bell against the highly-rated Northern Irishman.

“It probably wasn’t my absolute best but it was enough to get the win and I’m absolutely over the moon,” he said.

Moloney says he has enjoyed fighting without a helmet in Glasgow, but his girlfriend Chelsea Kean is not so comfortable with it.

“I don’t like the no headguard rule,” Kean said.

“There’s another boy who is fighting for Australia and he still has three fights to go and he has quite a bad cut so it does affect them really badly for the next few bouts.”

Goodall and Moloney will be Australia’s first Commonwealth Games boxing medallists for eight years, after the team returned home empty-handed from Delhi.

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