Magnificent in the pool and tremendous on the track, Australia dominate the medal table after a superb opening day at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. From the return of swimming star Ariarne Titmus to another big moment for champion goalkeeper Alyssa Healy, it was a very successful day for the green and gold.
Australia lead the gold medal count after winning eight of the 16 awarded on Friday, all of which were claimed in the London pool or velodrome, and are five ahead of New Zealand. Host nation England topped the medal count when the Commonwealth Games were last held in the UK in Glasgow in 2014, but already trail Australia by six gold medals.
After an outstanding performance at the World Championships in Budapest last month, Australia’s swimmers won five of the seven finals contested. The nation also took 11 of the 21 podium places in a dominant display, although Canadian teenage sensation Summer McIntosh was the standout swimmer as she produced an incredible display to win the 400m individual medley by almost eight seconds.
Titmus, a double gold medalist in Tokyo, used all her star power to hold off compatriot Mollie O’Callaghan in the 200m freestyle. The 18-year-old swam on the champion’s shoulder as he dropped 0.13 seconds to upset Titmus, who swam 1:53.89 to set a new Commonwealth Games record. Madi Wilson completed an Australian trifecta when she was third.
“I knew there was a bit of hype about the world record, but I don’t really think much of it. I just go out there and try to run the best I can,” Titmus said.
Tokyo gold medalist Zac Stubblety-Cook also has a Commonwealth Games gold medal to add to his trophy cabinet after winning the 200m breaststroke in Friday’s penultimate final. Recording a time of 2:08.07, the 23-year-old was pushed to the wall by England’s James Wilby, with Scotland’s Ross Murdoch taking the bronze medal.
Earlier, Elijah Winnington got the party started by leading home another Australian hat-trick in the 400m freestyle, with Sam Short and Mack Horton also finishing on the podium. Tim Hodge was an easy winner in the S9 100m backstroke, while Emma McKeon anchored Australia with success in the 100m freestyle medley relay to close the night.
At Lee Valley VeloPark, Jess Gallagher and her rider Caitlin Ward combined to win the nation’s first gold medal in Birmingham in the women’s tandem B Para-track event. A winter and summer Paralympic medalist, Gallagher has also represented Australia in skiing and athletics and is also determined to make his mark in rowing.
“I just keep getting better with age. It’s a real privilege to be a Paralympian and hopefully inspire anyone with a disability, but especially children,” Gallagher said.
Jess Gallagher and Caitlin Ward celebrate winning track cycling gold. Photograph: John Sibley/Reuters
In the velodrome, Georgia Baker, Maeve Plouffe, Sophie Edwards and Chloe Moran broke the Commonwealth Games record in the women’s 4,000m team pursuit. The quartet initially set a Games record of 4:14.605 when qualifying fastest and lowered the time to 4:12.234 when it was too good for New Zealand in the final.
The sprint team of Leigh Hoffman, Matthew Glaetzer and Matthew Richardson claimed a third track gold when they set another Games record.
The men’s 4,000m pursuit team had harbored gold medal aspirations but ultimately had to settle for bronze after failing to qualify for the final.
Australia’s world cricketers were stretched to the limit by India in the first women’s match at a Commonwealth Games, but eventually prevailed by three wickets. On a historic day at Edgbaston, Healy set a new mark of excellence as the 22nd edition of the Games kicked off under brilliant blue skies.
Smriti Mandhana had scored 24 runs from 17 balls when, in the fourth over of the T20 clash, Healy reached very low to her left to take a splendid catch off the bowling of Darcie Brown. It was the 32-year-old’s 100th dismissal in the short phase of the game, becoming the first man or woman in Twenty20 history to achieve the mark.
Australian captain Meg Lanning praised Healy, although his good luck did not extend to the bat, with the opener dismissed for a duck on the second ball of the innings. “Alyssa is an amazing player and has been for a long time and to get this is amazing and just shows how good she is,” he said.
Ash Gardner celebrates with Alana King after Australia’s opening win over India at Edgbaston. Photo: Darren England/AAP
Australia had significant trouble chasing down India’s total of 154 as they slumped to 49-5 before Grace Harris, who scored 37 off 20 balls, and Ashleigh Gardner, who remained unbeaten on 52, took control.
In another Commonwealth Games first, Australia’s women’s 3×3 basketball team won their first match in the newly incorporated sport 21-9 over Scotland as the Diamonds began their campaign to regain the gold in netball after his disappointment on the Gold Coast with a dominant 95-. 18 defeat of Barbados.
The women’s rugby sevens team were dominant in their two outings on Friday when they scored a combined 88-0 in wins against South Africa and Scotland, but the men’s side suffered a setback when, after thrashing Jamaica , tied with Uganda when they were left with just five. men on the park in the final minutes.