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Commonwealth Games 2018 Day 2: Clyde Lewis almost faints after 400m IM gold

Aussie smashes PB to win shock gold medal in men’s 400m IM ... then almost collapses on pool deck as he’s interviewed | WATCH

39 min read
10:25PMApril 06, 2018
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Australia's Mariafe Artacho dives for the ball during the preliminary round women’s beach volleyball match against Cyprus. Photo: AP
Australia's Mariafe Artacho dives for the ball during the preliminary round women’s beach volleyball match against Cyprus. Photo: AP

Welcome to live coverage of Day 2 of the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

10.19pm: Aussies smash ‘em, like ... well, you know

Australia has won the men’s 4x100m freestyle relay gold medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

The Australian team of Cameron McEvoy, James Magnussen, Jack Cartwright and Kyle Chalmers cruised to victory in Friday night’s final.

The quartet finished about two and a half seconds ahead of silver medallists England with Scotland taking the bronze medal.

— AAP

Eric George 10.05pm: Diamonds romp home

The Diamonds have wrapped up their match against Barbados in a canter, winning 79-24.

“A little bit of mucking around at the end but make sure you enjoy that win. Well done,” coach Lisa Alexander said in the post-match huddle.

Australia lifted their effort in the third quarter, running hard and passing flat. Laura Geitz was everywhere at goal keeper, getting her hands to plenty of ball.

Some quick touches from Madi Robinson and Queensland native Steph Wood allowed for lighting fast transitions up the court.

Caitlin Thwaites has been the real bolter of these Games so far. She’s yet to miss a shot, and continues to put in a strong argument for the seemingly unthinkable: unseating captain Caitlin Bassett from the starting spot in the goal circle once Australia reaches the finals.

The Diamonds now get a well earned day off before taking on a rapidly improving South Africa on Sunday afternoon.

10pm: GOLD! And Aussies lock out podium

Emma McKeon has won 100m butterfly gold at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in an Australian medal trifecta.

McKeon’s teammate Madeline Groves claimed silver with another Australian, Brianna Throssell, taking the bronze on Friday night.

McKeon remains on target to collect six medals at the Games after backing up from Australia’s world record breaking 4x100m freestyle relay gold, plus 200m freestyle bronze, on Thursday night.

— AAP

9.51pm: Meares welcomes next gen

Anna Meares is happy to sit back and watch as Australian cycling’s next sprint star makes a name for herself on the velodrome that bears her name. But while the retired Meares hopes Stephanie Morton surpasses her record of 11 world titles and two Olympic golds, she says comparing the two is unfair and off the mark.

Morton became the first Australian female to defend a Commonwealth Games sprint crown tonight, dominating the event in a promising sign ahead of Tokyo’s 2020 Olympics.

It was Australia’s 100th Commonwealth Games cycling gold and the 27-year-old’s second of a possible four at Brisbane’s Anna Meares Velodrome with the retired legend among the 4000 on hand to witness the masterclass.

Kaarle McCulloch took bronze after being knocked out by Morton in the semi-final, having paired with her to win the team sprint on Thursday. Morton beat Meares four years ago in Glasgow for her first Games title and along with men’s world champion Matthew Glaetzer, who also won gold on Friday night, will lead Australian cycling’s rebuild ahead of Tokyo.

Stephanie Morton celebrates after winning gold in the women's sprint. Photo: Getty Images
Stephanie Morton celebrates after winning gold in the women's sprint. Photo: Getty Images

— AAP

9.46pm: GOLD! Larkin wins 100m backstroke

Australia’s Mitch Larkin has won the gold medal in the men’s 100m backstroke at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

And Larkin’s Australian teammate Brad Woodward took the silver medal in tonight’s final.

The 24-year-old Larkin led from start to finish — after turning at the halfway stage in the lead, he held off a late surge from a fast-finishing Woodward. Another Australian, Benjamin Treffers, finished sixth.

Larkin’s victory gives him a second Commonwealth Games gold following his 200m backstroke success four years ago in Glasgow, where he also took silver over 100m.

Larkin also collected silver in the 50m backstroke and 4x100 medley relay at the Glasgow Games.

— AAP

9.40pm: GOLD! Glaetzer wins keirin

Australian cycling sprint ace Matthew Glaetzer has prevailed in a thrilling keirin final to defend his Commonwealth Games crown.

Shrugging off the disappointment of opening night bronze in the team sprint, Glaetzer negotiated the traffic to back up after his 2014 success in Glasgow.

In a pulsating six-man final, the South Australian found his way out of the pack to power to the front and stay there in a meet highlight for the 4000 fans at Anna Meares Velodrome.

The 25-year-old was made to work for his first gold medal of the Games, stuck in the middle of the pack once the pacer left the arena.

But he held his composure, pushing wide and then using his superior strength and speed to nudge ahead of Welsh rider Lewis Oliva and New Zealand’s Edward Dawkins and not give up the lead.

Glaetzer will back up for tomorrow’s sprint, in which he won the world championship one month ago in the Netherlands.

There he beat Scotland’s Jack Carlin, who was fourth in Friday night’s keirin final and shapes as his main rival on day three in Brisbane.

— AAP

Daniel Sankey 9.30pm: GOLD! ‘Have a seat, Clyde’

Australia’s Clyde Lewis smashed his personal best by more than three seconds to win a shock gold medal in men’s 400m individual medley ... then almost collapsed on pool deck as he was interview.

Brought over to Channel Seven’s Nathan Templeton on the arm of a volunteer, Lewis was clearly distressed after giving his all to take gold in 4:13.12.

“Are you okay to stand up? Are you about to faint? Are you alright?” Templeton said as he began his interview with a clearly exhausted Lewis.

The Aussie nodded in the affirmative, with Templeton signalling for a chair to be brought over.

“Sit down, have a seat. I think you’ve earned it.”

Lewis bravely continued with the interview ...but it was clear he was not up to it.

“It was pretty good, I’m pretty stoked with it,” he said before appearing to stop himself from vomiting.

Mercifully, the interview was terminated and Lewis was left to recover on the supplied chair.

Eric George 9.25pm: Diamonds in cruise control

The Diamonds are cruising in their netball match against Barbados and lead 39-12 at half time.

It’s an impressive start, but it’s still a long way off the near-perfect we saw last night against Northern Ireland.

The Australians took their foot off the pedal in the second quarter and some easy turnovers crept into the match. Passing through the middle of the court seemed toe be a step slower in particular.

You certainly can’t fault the shooting performance though, with Susan Pettitt and Caitlin Thwaites both going at 100 per cent.

Barbados is in no danger of upsetting the home team here, but Australian coach Lisa Alexander is sure to expect a lift from the Diamonds in the second half as she rings the changes. Look for captain Bassett and comeback star Laura Geitz to lift their teammates in the final two quarters.

9.03pm: GOLD! Disken takes S9 100m freestyle

Australian para-swimmer Timothy Disken has won gold in the men’s S9 100m freestyle at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Compatriot Brenden Hall took the bronze medal, with another Australian, Tim Hodge, coming fourth.

Disken, a 21-year-old from Melbourne who started swimming as therapy for cerebral palsy, also won gold, silver and bronze medals at the 2016 Paralympics.

— AAP

9.02pm: Table tennis teams victorious

Australia’s table tennis teams have kept their unbeaten records intact to progress closer to medal ties at the Commonwealth Games.

After claiming two ties each on the opening day, Australia’s men and women both comfortably won knockout encounters at Oxenford Studios today.

David Powell and Heming Hu sealed the 3-0 win over Sri Lanka tonight with a victory in the doubles game after Hu and Xin Yan both won their singles appearances in the best-of-five meeting.

They progressed to a quarter-final meeting with Nigeria tomorrow.

Earlier, Miao Miao ended Wales’ run in her singles match against Charlotte Casey, knocking the women’s team — and their 11-year-old rookie Anna Hursey — out of the event 3-1.

Veteran Miao was joined by Melissa Tapper and Jian Fang Lay, with Tracy Feng and Michelle Bromley on the sidelines.

Their greatest competition now looms in Sunday’s semi-final against Singapore who are defending the team gold won at Glasgow 2014.

Miao Miao in action against Wales. Photo: Getty Images
Miao Miao in action against Wales. Photo: Getty Images

— AAP

8.58pm: GOLD! Toomey wins 58kg weightlifting

Australian CrossFit queen Tia-Clair Toomey has won gold in the women’s 58kg weightlifting class at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Toomey, who won the 2017 CrossFit Games, completed six out of six lifts tonight, snatching a best 87kg and clean and jerking 114kg for a winning total of 201kg.

The 24-year-old finished 1kg ahead of Canadian silver medallist Tali Darsigny (200kg) and bronze medallist Jenly Wini (189kg) of the Solomon Islands. A confident Toomey went head to head with Darsigny thoughout her maiden Games competition and sat 1kg adrift following the snatch.

But she came to the fore in the second discipline with a comfortable clean and jerk of 107kg, then 111kg, before topping out at the required 114kg. The result is a remarkable improvement on Toomey’s 14th-place finish at the Rio Olympics, which was only her third international weightlifting competition after adding the sport to her CrossFit repertoire.

It comes days after she lost her cousin, 17-year-old Jade Dixson, to a car accident and she had pledged to dedicate her gold-medal tilt to her late relative.

— AAP

8.55pm: Silver for Australia’s Ellie Cole

8.54pm: Aussies gymnasts take bronze

Australia’s gymnasts have claimed bronze in the women’s artistic team event at the Commonwealth Games, succumbing to nerves on the big stage as Canada narrowly edged out England to win gold.

Led by Queensland duo Georgia Godwin and Georgia-Rose Brown, the Australians started strongly on the vault but faltered badly on the balance beam and were outmatched by their more polished rivals.

Superstar Ellie Black led the way for Canada to deny defending champions England, who were without injured big names Claudia Fragapane and Amy Tinkler.

Australia’s Georgia Godwin in action during the artistic gymnastics fina. Photo: AAP
Australia’s Georgia Godwin in action during the artistic gymnastics fina. Photo: AAP

— AAP

Daniel Sankey 8.28pm: Cate just misses world record

Cate Campbell cruised into the wall to win her 50m freestyle semi-final, turned around to see the time ... and the shock on her face belied just how fast she’d swum.

Campbell’s blistering 23.88 semi-final victory over her sister, Bronte (24.38), broke the previous Commonwealth Games record by almost one-tenth of a second ... but was only two-tenths outside Swede Sarah Sjostrom’s world mark of 23.67.

With the Campbell sisters’ fellow 4x100m freestyle relay gold medallist Shayna Jack winning the earlier semi-final in 24.63 seconds, it gave Australia the top three qualifiers for tomorrow night’s final and seemingly a mortgage on the medals.

But the story of the women’s 50m freestyle semi-finals was written on Cate’s face as she digested what was a much faster than expected semi-final swim. Sjostrom’s world record is on notice.

8.08pm: Toomey in box seat for medal

Australian CrossFit queen Tia-Clair Toomey has put herself in a strong position for gold halfway through the women’s 58kg weightlifting competition at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Toomey, who won the 2017 CrossFit Games, completed all three snatches tonight, with a best of 87kg.

It leaves the 24-year-old in second place leading into the clean and jerk, only 1kg behind Canada’s Tali Darsigny.

— AAP

Daniel Sankey 8.05pm: GOLD! Chalmers storms home in 200m free

Australia’s 19yo senstation Kyle Chalmers led home an Australian one-two in the 200m freestyle, destroying a top quality field in the final lap with a personal best time of of 1:45.56.

Teammate and 400m freestyle gold medallist Mack Horton also swam a personal best of 1:45.89 from lane one as the Aussies locked out the top two positions on the podium.

Chalmers, the Rio Olympics 100m freestyle gold medallist, was happy to bide his time at the back of the pack for the first 100m before making his move in the third lap.

He took the lead just after turning for home and surged away in the final stages to win comfortably.

Scotland’s Duncan Scott took the bronze in 1:46.30.

“It’s a fun race, I think I’ve still got to have that little bit more practice of how to swim the race,” Chalmers said.

“I’ve got to learn to swim my own race right from the start because I do have that 100m background so I probably should be out that bit quicker.

“But to be able to come home in that last 50m and feel that strong tonight, wow, it gives me a lot of confidence moving forward in the 200m.”

7.48pm: Wiasak takes individual pursuit silver

Overlooked for Australia’s successful team pursuit yesterday, Rebecca Wiasak has replied with individual silver in her Commonwealth Games debut.

An upset was brewing as the 33-year-old led for the middle stages of a taxing 3000m ride-off, before being ousted by Scottish favourite Katie Archibald.

Wiasak was eventually beaten by nearly 1.5 seconds after compatriot Annette Edmondson had taken bronze, ahead of Australian teammate Ashlee Ankudinoff.

— AAP

Daniel Sankey 7.43pm: Pickett wins bronze in 50m breaststroke

England extended its lead at the top of the 2018 Commonwealth Games medal tally, with Sarah Vasey winning a thrilling women’s 50m breaststroke final.

All eight finalists finished within 0.72 seconds of each other, but it was Vasey who touched the wall first in 30.60 seconds ahead of Jamaica’s Alia Atkinson (30.76) and fast-finishing Australian Leiston Pickett (30.78).

Fellow Aussie Jessica Hansen (30.83) was fitth, just ahead of sixth-placed teammate Georgia Bohl (30.88).

Daniel Sankey 7.38pm: Morgan, Irvine miss medals

Australia’s Grant Irvine and David Morgan have missed out on medals in the men’s 50m butterfly final, with South Africa’s Chad le Clos (23.37) leading from start to finish to win gold — his 13th Commonwealth Games medal.

It was a one-three finish for South Africa, with Ryan Coetzee (23.73) taking bronze just behind Trinidad and Tobago’s Dylan Carter (23.67).

Irvine (23.76) finished just outside the medals in fourth, while Morgan (24.01) was eighth.

7.29pm: Glaetzer brings back the biff

Australia’s Matt Glaetzer is on track for gold in the men’s keirin, winning heat two in convincing fashion.

But a word of warning to his opposition ... if you’re up against him when the finals commence later tonight, be careful. He’s ready to bring back the biff.

7.20pm: Boomers cruise to big win

Australia steamrolled Canada 95-55 in the opening game of their Commonwealth Games campaign in Cairns on Friday.

The Boomers trailed 13-10 midway through the opening term, before a 15-0 run to close the quarter gave them a comfortable lead they would hold throughout the game.

Daniel Kickert led all scorers with 14 points, one of five players in double- figures for the host nation.

— AAP

6.46pm: Are you not entertained?

Even the governor-general had to be told he was having fun.

Taliqua Clancy of Australia looks on as Mariafe Artacho serves during their match against Mariota Angelopoulou and Manolina Konstantinou of Cyprus. Photo: AAP
Taliqua Clancy of Australia looks on as Mariafe Artacho serves during their match against Mariota Angelopoulou and Manolina Konstantinou of Cyprus. Photo: AAP

In fact, Sir Peter Cosgrove was where the party’s at and it was so much fun, some had to let everyone know they were having a “friggin’ awesome” time. It was beach volleyball’s Commonwealth Games debut and there’s no more fitting place for the first time than on the Gold Coast.

It’s a sport like few others — on the beach, in the sun, girls in bikinis. It all adds up to a raucous party.

But you could still hear Coolangatta’s surf rolling in over the booming announcements and blaring music, hosts constantly exhorting the crowd of around 3000 to have fun.

“I’m up here having a friggin’ awesome time,” one announcer told the crowd between points in the Australian women’s first round match against Cyprus today.

She also made sure the crowd knew where they were.

“This is where the party’s at. This is the party venue people, this is where it’s at.”

Then her colleague courtside in a Hawaiian shirt and shorts ensemble wanted to ensure the crowd understood the conditions of entry, including Mexican waves.

“We’re having a good time, are you having a good time?” he screamed. No-one dared say no.

Even Sir Peter sitting in the $19 million makeshift stadium which actually had to import sand because Coolangatta’s was too fine. Australian pair Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar looked like they were obeying the instructions as they cruised to a straight sets win over their Cypriot rivals.

Australia's Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove (centre) and his wife Lady Cosgrove attend the women's beach volleyball preliminary match between Australia and Cyprus. Photo: AAP
Australia's Governor General Sir Peter Cosgrove (centre) and his wife Lady Cosgrove attend the women's beach volleyball preliminary match between Australia and Cyprus. Photo: AAP

It was party time for them as well — after every one of the 65 points in the match, the pair gave each other a hug, a high 10, a low 10, or a bum tap, depending on how the rally played out.

A scorching winner from Clancy would be met with the multi-combination of hug, high 10 and bum pat.

A fault from the Cypriots would even get a hug and a high 10. An error, though, would only earn an encouraging low 10, occasionally a hug, but rarely a bum pat.

The physical contact is crucial, they say.

“It’s definitely very important in these stadiums because they’re so loud we need to come together, encourage and create that connection,” Clancy said.

“Sometimes you can’t do it through voice.”

The announcers didn’t have that problem.

— AAP

6.45pm: Aussie women overcome Welsh phenom

Australia is through to the women’s table tennis semi-finals having knocked Wales — and their 11-year-old phenom Anna Hursey — out of the team’s event.

Melissa Tapper, Miao Miao and 45-year-old Jian Fang helped to secure the 3-1 win on Friday night for the home team.

Singapore is already through to the semi-finals at Oxenford Studios on Sunday, while powerhouse teams from England, Canada, Malaysia and India will be whittled down to two on Saturday to fill the remaining spots.

— AAP

6.25pm: Test your Comm Games knowledge

Wally Mason 5.55pm: Youth v experience

A battle of the ages is raging at the table tennis venue at Oxenford. Australian pair Miao Miao and Jian Fang Lay — our oldest competitor at 45 — are in action against the youngest athlete at the Commonwealth Games.

Miao and Lay have won the first set against Welsh duo Chloe Thomas and 11-year-old Anna Hursey in the quarter-finals of the teams event at the Commonwealth Games.

They took the set 11-8.

Anna Hursey, 11, is back in action in the table tennis competition. Picture: Getty
Anna Hursey, 11, is back in action in the table tennis competition. Picture: Getty

5.30pm: Women’s sprint final four

Stephanie Morton, the gold medal favourite in the cycling sprint event, will need to take down compatriot Kaarle McCulloch if she wants to take the title.

The pair will race in tonight’s semi-finals at the Anna Meares Velodrome, while Canada’s Lauriane Genest will take on New Zealand’s Natasha Hansen in the other semi.

Hansen had to survive a review of her clinching race against Malaysia’s Fatehah Mustapa, after the pair made contact just after the turn in their second race.

It was ruled incidental, however, and Hansen survived being relegated.

5pm: England, Scotland battle set

English rider Charlie Tanfield has narrowly missed out on a world record in the men’s 4000m individual pursuit, setting a games record on the way to a place in the gold medal race.

He will take on Scottish cyclist John Archibald tonight in the main event.

Tanfield clocked 4min11.55sec, more than a second and a half faster than Archibald and about one second outside the world record, set in 2011.

New Zealand’s Dylan Kennett will face Australia’s Jordan Kirby in the race for bronze after a dazzling qualifying event resulted in a new Games record being set five times.

England’s Charlie Tanfield celebrates a Games record in the 4000m individual pursuit. Picture: Getty
England’s Charlie Tanfield celebrates a Games record in the 4000m individual pursuit. Picture: Getty

Charlie Peel 4.30pm: Malaria strikes down athlete

A Commonwealth Games athlete in a serious condition has been taken to hospital to be treated for malaria.

Games officials have confirmed the 23-year-old was admitted to the Gold Coast University Hospital today after showing symptoms of the mosquito-borne disease.

“The patient received immediate treatment for malaria on arrival at GCUH,” GOLDOC said in a statement.

“The patient remains admitted to GCUH in a serious condition and continues to be closely monitored.”

Because the disease is spread through infected mosquitoes, GOLDOC did not require athlete to be quarantined.

“Malaria is a serious infection spread by mosquitoes in some countries,” the statement said. “There is no locally acquired malaria in mainland Australia. We have robust treatments for malaria in this country.”

GOLDOC would not reveal the nation or sport of the affected athlete.

4.10pm: Record holder, but not for long

Australian Sam Welsford comes out in the 4000m individual pursuit and sets a new Games record of 4min13.595sec, beating the mark of 4min14.845 held by compatriot Jack Borbridge.

But he doesn’t get long to soak up the glory.

Just two races later New Zealand’s Dylan Kennett eclipses Welsford’s time, clocking 4min13.414.

To add to the fun, Scotland road cyclist turned track competitor John Archibald lowers it further in his qualifying ride to 4min13.068

This Brisbane circuit is clearly a quick one, with steamy conditions inside the facility aiding the chase of record times.

We are just halfway through the men’s event, so the Games record is in danger of falling further.

3.40pm: Velodrome action heats up

Qualifying has begun in the men’s 4000m individual pursuit, which offers a break for the women in the sprint quarter-finals.

The first race in the four best-of-three sprint quarters has been run and won. Australians Stephanie Morton and Kaarle McCulloch have taken a one-race lead, as have Canada’s Lauriane Genest and New Zealand’s Natasha Hansen in their match-ups.

New Zealand’s Natasha Hansen hits top speed in the sprint quarter-finals. Picture: Getty
New Zealand’s Natasha Hansen hits top speed in the sprint quarter-finals. Picture: Getty

3.20pm: Wiasak bounce back

Rebecca Wiasak has cast aside the disappointment of being excluded from Australia’s team pursuit gold medal squad to earn a shot at her own individual Commonwealth title, AAP reports.

The two-time individual pursuit world champion was an unlucky omission from the team that lapped New Zealand on the way to gold at Brisbane Anna Meares Velodrome on Thursday.

Unfazed, the 33-year-old notched a Games record on debut to better her teammates and set up a gold medal duel with Scotland’s Kate Archibald later tonight. Wiasak recorded 3min25.936 secs over the 3000m before Archibald, an Olympic team pursuit champion in Rio, set a new Games mark with 3:24.119 in the final qualifier.

That relegated Australians Annette Edmondson and Ashlee Ankudinoff to a battle for bronze later on Friday.

“Yeah, we’re all in great form, the girls showed that last night,” Wiasak said. “I know we’re in great shape ... I’m pretty stoked with that.”

2.50pm: Kiwis overcome shocking slump

The Silver Ferns have shrugged off an abominable second quarter to dispatch pool opponents Wales 70-44, AAP reports.

Cruising with a 23-14 advantage heading into quarter-time, the Ferns sunk into a 15-minute-long panic attack in the second period, conceding 13 goals to nine and giving up the netball again and again.

Wales, ranked 10th in the world, lost to New Zealand by 65 and 33 goals respectively in the two sides’ February 2017 Test series.

They had never previously won a quarter against the Ferns.

Yet the Kiwis rallied in the third period after injecting Te Paea Selby-Rickit in at goal shooter and Kelly Jury at goal keeper, piling on six unanswered goals at the start of the quarter and re-establishing a 53-36 lead.

The Ferns then cruised to the final hooter.

Yet, while the Ferns have proven far too strong for the likes of Uganda and Wales, they’re unlikely to have it so easy in the coming 10 days, with the likes of Australia, England and Jamaica on the horizon.

They turned over the ball 16 times across the four quarters.

Te Paea Selby-Rickit of New Zealand collects the ball during the pool game against Wales. Picture: Getty
Te Paea Selby-Rickit of New Zealand collects the ball during the pool game against Wales. Picture: Getty

2.35pm: Friendly fire

Australian squash star Donna Urquhart is through to the quarter-finals after a gutsy five-game win over compatriot Christine Nunn, AAP reports. The world No.16 had to draw on all her fighting abilities after falling behind two sets-to-one today and then forcing a final game before prevailing 6-11 11-4 7-11 11-6 11-5.

“It was point-for-point until five-all and I was trying really hard to get my nose in front,” Urquhart said.

“I think it was at that point where I got the momentum going my way. Anything can happen in fifth game, so you’ve just got to try to be solid and I think I did that well. If nothing else today, I gutsed it out.”

Nunn, who is ranked 55th in the world, pushed her more-fancied rival early by taking advantage of Urquhart’s uncharacteristic error-prone start. But Urquhart fought back and is now one win away from moving into the medal round.

“I didn’t play as confidently as I would’ve liked to. All credit to Christine, she didn’t let me, either. She went out volleying everything and really taking the game to me,” she said.

Earlier on Friday, Australian men’s No.1 Ryan Cuskelly withdrew from the singles after succumbing to a leg injury following his day-one win.

Cuskelly had moved into the round of 16 after beating Othneil Bailey of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines but has opted to focus on recovering to compete in the doubles next week.

Cuskelly and Cameron Pilley are ranked world No.1 in the doubles and Cuskelly’s exit leaves Pilley as Australia’s next best hope of challenging for gold in the singles.

2.05pm: Another record falls

Stephanie Morton has been made to work for top spot in qualifying as she sets her sights on defending her Commonwealth Games sprint title, AAP reports.

The Australian sprinter shot to top spot ahead of tonight’s four-stage finals sequence but had to break a new Games record to do it. Fresh off team sprint gold alongside Kaarle McCulloch on day one, Morton clocked 10.524 seconds to beat her own Commonwealth record of 10.984 set four years ago in Glasgow on her way to gold.

But that mark had earlier been beaten by three others, including McCulloch, in another sign of how fast Anna Meares Velodrome is proving.

McCulloch finished fourth fastest, with Canada’s Lauriane Genest and New Zealand’s Natasha Hansen second and third respectively.

Knock-out rides on Friday night, with cyclists engaged in cat-and-mouse battles, may well pit Thursday’s gold medal pairing against each other before the medal rounds.

Later on Friday 2014 silver medallist Annette Edmondson and two-time world champion Rebecca Wiasak will also compete in the women’s 3000m individual pursuit.

World individual pursuit champion Jordan Kerby will tackle teammates Sam Welsford and Kelland O’Brien a day after they broke the world record together and secured gold for Australia over England in the team pursuit. Matthew Glaetzer will round out the action in the men’s keirin, where he will be defending his 2014 crown.

Charlie Peel 1.40pm: Crowd warning backfires

Gold Coast residents may have listened too closely to the messages from organisers in the lead up to the Commonwealth Games, contributing to a lacklustre atmosphere away from competition venues on the Gold Coast.

Taxi drivers and businesses have reported quiet trade over the first two days of the Games.

But GOLDOC chief executive Mark Peters believes the crowds will pick up as the weather clears and word gets out about the Festival 2018 cultural program.

“We started to see last night, the festival, people starting to come into Broadbeach and Surfers Paradise,” Mr Peters said. “Some people when they came in on the first day found restaurants closed but we’ve seen that change now.

“Not everyone comes for the first day for the Opening Ceremony; some people specifically want to be here for the beach volleyball or for the athletes.”

The ‘Get Set for the Games’ advertising by Department of Transport and Main Roads, GOLDOC and the Gold Coast City Council in the months before the Games encouraged residents to keep off roads and prepare for crowds in the city.

Business owners in Surfers Paradise believe the messaging had been too strong and many locals and potential visitors had avoided the coast.

Mr Peters said public transport to and from venues had “worked well” on the first day of competition and “people (were) able to get around the city comfortably” because of the lack of congestion.

Surfers Paradise has been relatively quiet for this time of year, which is a school holiday period in Queensland. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen
Surfers Paradise has been relatively quiet for this time of year, which is a school holiday period in Queensland. Picture: Lyndon Mechielsen

He estimated 23 to 25 per cent of regular traffic was reduced because of the school holiday period.

“A lot of the work done by the ‘Get Set’ program, which is headed by the council, ourselves and TMR has been about messaging that 30 per cent of the car use on the coast is discretionary,” Mr Peters said.

“You can choose when you are actually going to go somewhere for a particular purpose.

“I can only congratulate the citizens of the Gold Coast because traffic is working extremely well.

Mr Peters said Gold Coast residents, like those in London during the 2012 Olympics, would be able to find a balance between enjoying the festivities and helping facilitate the Games.

“We know in London there was a really strong message about ‘work from home, stay away’ and all that sort of stuff and after three days it was changed to ‘come into the city’ because people were too conscious of what they needed to do,” he said.

Spectators had also paid particular attention to the message to arrive at venues at least an hour before events, which was intended to ensure staggered arrivals at security gates.

Large crowds arriving early met a bottleneck at the swimming on day one where there were not enough security scanners to let people through.

“People actually heeded our advice to get there early,” Mr Peters said.

“So we are now getting those stations opened earlier to allow people to flow through.”

About 150,000 spectators are expected to turn out to a variety of events today.

Mark Peters, CEO of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation. Picture: Jerad Williams
Mark Peters, CEO of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation. Picture: Jerad Williams

1.10pm: Aussie boxer drops the hammer

Campbell Somerville has proven too big and too strong for his Grenada opponent in their 75kg round of 32 contest.

Somerville knocked down Joshua Redhead four times in their bout, which was mercifully stopped by the referee in the third and final round.

The 21-year-old victor used his 15cm height advantage to pick off Redhead at will. He is now into the last 16 of the competition.

Wayne Smith 12.41pm: Every which way but Lewis

Australia’s Clyde Lewis, who delights in telling the tale of how he was named after an orangutan, might soon have another story to tell — of how he almost fell into a 400m individual medley medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Precisely which medal won’t be determined until the final tonight, but Lewis is certainly shaping as the accidental favourite after emerging from the heats as fastest qualifier this morning.

Australia's Clyde Lewis during his men’s 400m IM heat this morning. Photo: AFP
Australia's Clyde Lewis during his men’s 400m IM heat this morning. Photo: AFP

Lewis, whose dad happened to be an avid Clint Eastwood fan and named him after the orangutan in Every Which Way But Loose, won the 200m individual medley at trials but wasn’t expected to swim the 400m individual medley here.

Clint Eastwood with 'Clyde' from Every Which Way But Loose.
Clint Eastwood with 'Clyde' from Every Which Way But Loose.

But with training partner Mitch Larkin having his sights set firmly on the backstroke events here, Lewis was asked by team officials to swim the 400m im and surprised himself by how well he swam today. Okay, there were only 10 competitors in the preliminaries, two just more than were necessary for a straight-out final, but Lewis still was happy to have had the morning swim.

“It’s going to be nuts tonight and I haven’t swum in that pool before,” he admitted. “I guess I don’t really know how to do a 400m. I knew I wanted to win and it was a good time (4.17.25, a second outside his best from three years ago). Hopefully I’ll break that tonight.”

The 20-year-old, a member of Dean Boxall’s powerful squad that includes not Larkin but Ariarne Titmus, swam in the first heat which should have been a disadvantage because it gave his rivals a clear shot at his time. As it turned out, however, despite fellow Australian Travis Mahoney (4.19.17) leading hard all the way and only surrendering first place about 20m from the wall to Scotland’s Mark Szavanek (4.18.17) and Canada’s (4.18.73), the pace actually turned out to be slower.

Nicole Jeffery 12.21pm: Missile confirms relay place

Dual world champion James Magnussen has confirmed his place in the men’s 4x100m freestyle team that will swim for a gold medal tonight after setting the second-fastest split in this morning’s heats.

Olympic champion Kyle Chalmers was rested from the relay heats after swimming the 200m freestyle this morning, giving dual Olympian James Roberts a chance to press his claims for inclusion in the final four.

Magnussen’s position was under threat after he finished fourth in the 100m at the national trials last month, but he successfully repelled the challenge today as the Australian quartet set a Games record of 3min12.72sec.

National record-holder Cameron McEvoy led off the relay in 48.63sec, handing over to Magnussen (47,87sec), then world championships finalist Jack Cartwright (47.74sec) and Roberts (48.48sec).

Once half a second is added to Roberts’ time to allow for a flying start, he will be the man to miss out when Chalmers comes into the the team tonight.

“It wasn’t quite as fast as I wanted,’’ Roberts said.

“I was maybe a bit too safe on the changeover but these boys have got to do a job tonight.’’

McEvoy said they would take their inspiration from the women’s world record swim last night.

“Tonight we will step up and replicate what the girls did in terms of getting out in front and holding on,’’ he said.

The Australians are hot favourites to win the event. Scotland was the second-fastest team in the heats but was almost four seconds slower than the home team.

12.10pm: Napper outside medals

A failed attempt at a 95kg clean and jerk has cost Australian weightlifter Tegan Napper the chance of a Commonwealth Games bronze medal in the women’s 53kg class.

The pocket-sized geologist from the Gold Coast was considered a strong chance to go one better than her fourth place in Glasgow four years ago. But on an off day, Napper snatched a top of 75kg and clean and jerked a best of 91kg for a total of 166kg, which left her outside medal contention at Carrara Sport and Leisure Centre on Friday.

— AAP

Nicole Jeffery 11.53am: Tough task for Cole

Australia’s reigning Paralympic champion Ellie Cole faces a tougher challenge than she did in Rio to win the Commonwealth Games gold medal in the S9 100m backstroke on the Gold Coast.

England’s Alice Tai was reclassified before the Games from the higher function S10 category into the S9 category and has a personal best time that is three seconds faster than Cole’s.

That was reflected in today’s heats which Tai dominated in 1:09.63. Cole was second fastest in 1:11.18.

Cole, who is a leg amputee, said she struggled to swim straight because she was looking up into the sun in the the outdoor pool.

“I felt like I was in a human pinball machine, trying to rack up my score,’’ she joked.

Ellie Cole in action in the women's S9 100m backstroke heats. Photo: Getty Images
Ellie Cole in action in the women's S9 100m backstroke heats. Photo: Getty Images

Wayne Smith 11.52am: Peaty toys with opposition

When the world record holder who also happens to be the reigning Olympic, world and Commonwealth champion lines up for a swim at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, it’s pretty much a foregone conclusion.

So it was when England’s Adam Peaty took to the water at the Optus Aquatic Centre this morning and almost toyed with his rivals to lead the qualifiers into tonight’s semi-finals. Seeded into his customary lane four in the fourth and fastest heat, Peaty cruised through in 59.14, fully two seconds outside his own world record set at the Rio Games of 2016.

And given that his stated ambition is to be the first man in history to swim the 100m breaststroke in under 57sec, he clearly is far from satisfied with his current dominance of the discipline.

England 's Adam Peaty (left) got the betteer of Australia's Matt Wilson in their men’s 100m breaststroke heat this morning. Photo: AFP
England 's Adam Peaty (left) got the betteer of Australia's Matt Wilson in their men’s 100m breaststroke heat this morning. Photo: AFP

Australia’s Matt Wilson pushed him as hard as he was able, his 1.00.29 for second place being just .19sec outside his personal best, but certainly the ease with which Peaty got to the wall suggests yet another gold medal for England tomorrow night. And if, perchance, something goes wrong for Peaty, countrymen James Wilby, the winner of the 200m breaststroke last night, is poised to pick up the baton.

The 24-year-old looked to be comfortably in command of his heat, recording the only other sub-minute swim, 59.80, as South African veteran Cameron van der Burgh, a Commonwealth Games record holder in the 50m breaststroke, took second in 1.0029.

NSW’s Adam Packard matched his Australian teammate Wilson to the hundredth of a second to win his heat in 1:00.29, while Queensland 20-year-old Liam Hunter also advanced to the semi-finals as the 11th fastest after qualifier after placing third behind Packard and Glasgow Games 200m breaststroke gold medallist Ross Murdoch, of Scotland.

Nicole Jeffery 11.30am: Seebohm’s record lasts two minutes

Emily Seebohm faces a stern test as she attempts to win her third consecutive Commonwealth title in the 100m backstroke, as today’s heats demonstrated.

In the second of three heats, Seebohm clocked a Games record of 58.91sec, but her main rival for gold here, Canada’s reigning world champion and world record-holder Kylie Masse responded just a couple of minutes later in the very next heat, lowering the Games record to 58.70sec.

Seebohm, the world 200m backstroke champion, typically likes to build through the rounds of her events and only unleash her full form in the final and said she was satisfied with her start.

“It’s my first swim of the meet so I just wanted to give it a good crack,’’ she said.

“I just want to keep improving. (Masse) is the current world record-holder and world champion so it’s going to be a battle.’’

Earlier, Sunshine Coast schoolgirl Kaylee McKeown won her heat in 1:00.65 to progress to tonight’s semi-finals as the fifth fastest qualifier, just ahead of the multi-talented Canadian Taylor Ruck (1:00.72) who won the 200m freestyle last night and also swam the 50m freestyle heats this morning.

Canada's Kylie Masse on her way to a new Commonwealth Games record in the women’s 100m backstroke heats. Photo: AP
Canada's Kylie Masse on her way to a new Commonwealth Games record in the women’s 100m backstroke heats. Photo: AP

Daniel Sankey 11.15am: Aussies face Peaty chase

Australia’s men’s 100m breastroke hopes — Matt Wilson, Jake Packard and Liam Hunter — all safely through to tonight’s semi-finals ... but they have a red-hot Englishman to catch.

World record holder and defending champ Adam Peaty was just 0.3 seconds outside his own Games record, winning heat four in 59.14 from Wilson (1:00.29) , who pushed him all the way in the final 50m.

Packard won heat three in 1:00.29 from Scotland’s Ross Murdoch (1:00.92), with Hunter third in 1:02.17.

Wayne Smith 11.11am: 200m free could be race of Games

Australia’s reigning Olympic 100m freestyle champion swimming up, Australia’s reigning Olympic 400m freestyle champion swimming down. One would think the 200m freestyle would be at the Dolphins’ mercy at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

Instead it is shaping as one of the most hotly-contested races of the meet. Kyle Chalmers, the Rio Olympic champion in the blue riband event, looked like a man searching for the appropriate tactics as he had to come from behind to overhaul South Africa’s Chad le Clos in the first seeded heat of the event — which was hardly surprising, given than that he has swum barely a handful of 200m races.

In the end he did it well. From being back in the field at the halfway mark, Chalmers moved up to second place to le Clos at the 150m mark and then gradually reeled in the South African as his early fast pace began to tire him. It was neck and neck for a while but, as he proved in Brazil two years ago, no-one finds the wall better than Chalmers, who touched in 1:47.19, .27sec ahead of le Clos.

“I knew he would swim that way,” said Chalmers. “His first 50 in the 200m in Rio was actually faster than my first 50 in the 100m.”

Chalmers’ time was eclipsed in the next very heat, but not by Mack Horton. Having won Australia’s first gold in the pool in the 400m freestyle — as he had done in Rio as well — Horton must have been feeling a little stiff and sore, though he did not look it as he set out in pursuit of England’s James Guy, the world champion in this event at the world titles in Kazan in 2015. Again, his tactics were predictable — to try to steal the race by leading out hard and while his scheme didn’t work in the 400m, in which he faded to bronze, it was good enough to pip Horton, 1:47.04 to the Australian’s 1:47.89.

Horton insisted that he had been feeling comfortable in the water despite his eight laps of exertion on the opening night at the pool. “My body’s okay,” he said. “I think I came through it better than anyone else.”

But the real step up in times came in the final heat where Australia’s Alexander Graham gave it his best shot to lead through the 150m mark but eventually was swamped by the dual world championship relay gold medallist from 2015 and 2017, Scotland’s Duncan Scott, who clocked the best qualifying time of the morning, 1:46.62, with 25-year-old Welshman Calum Jarvis taking second place in 1.47.04.

So, despite Australia concentrating its Olympic medal power in the event, Chalmers was only fourth fastest into the final, with Graham (1.47.35) fifth and Horton seventh. Still, the whole purpose of the exercise was to make the final and with there being no semis, there could be no sluggish swimming whatever in the morning.

Nicole Jeffery 11.09am: Campbell in cruise mode

Cate Campbell is back on a roll.

After leading the Australian team to a world record in the 4x100m freestyle relay last night, she returned this morning to lead the field through the 50m freestyle heats in 24.24sec.

Considering she clocked 23.89sec, feet on the wall, for the first 50m of her fastest ever 100m split in last night’s relay, this was Campbell in cruise mode.

“Every time you swim fast your confidence gets a bit of a boost,’’ she said afterwards.

“Everything out there is fantastic — it’s what dreams are made of really.’’

The Australian trio of Cate and Bronte Campbell and their young training partner Shayna Jack returned from their relay triumph to dominate this morning’s sprint precedings.

They were the only swimmers to crack the 25-second barrier in the heats.

Fresh from the thrill of being part of her first world record and Commonwealth Games gold medal team last night, teenager Shayna Jack flew through her 50m freestyle heat in 24.50sec.

“I feel like the adrenalin is still flowing,’’ she exclaimed.

Bronte Campbell swam a more measured race of 24.87sec but also won her heat.

The next fastest swimmer in the field was Canada’s new Commonwealth 200m freestyle champion Taylor Ruck in 25.13sec.

They will all return tonight for the semi-finals.

Daniel Sankey 11.02am: Campbell sisters are at it again

Australia’s Cate Campbell, Bronte Campbell and Shayna Jack are all safely through to tonight’s semi-finals of the women’s 50m freestyle with victories in their heats this morning.

Cate was particularly impressive, hardly raising a sweat as she stopped the clock in heat six at 24.24 seconds, less than half a second outside her personal best of 23.79 seconds.

Earlier, sister Bronte won heat five in 24.87 seconds, while Jack won heat four in a new personal best time of 24.50 seconds.

The three Aussies, all part of Australia’s world record-setting 4x100m freestyle relay last night, were the only swimmers to break 25 seconds in the 50m freestyle heats.

Daniel Sankey 10.47am: Chalmers powers into 200m free final

Australia’s Olympic 100m freestyle champion Kyle Chalmers has produced his customary whirlwind finish to win his heat and qualify for the final of the longer event, the 200m freestyle.

Trailing Olympic silver medallist Chad Le Clos by a bodylength going into the final lap, Chalmers produced his six-beat kick to cruise past the South African to win in 1:47.10, just half a second outside his PB.

Le Clos was second in 1:47.37, with Scotland’s Stephen Milne third in 1:48.08.

Speaking before the event, Chalmers spoke of his desire to prove his Olympic victory was not a case of a supreme effort from a “one-hit wonder”.

He said after the heat win that he thought he might have been able to go a little bit faster — an ominous sign for his competitors tonight.

“It’s a good heat swim, I think it’s the fastest I’ve been in the morning,” Chalmers told Channel 7.

“I knew he (Le Clos) was going to be out quick. I just wanted to get on the wall first.”

Chalmers will be joined in tonight’s final by 400m freestyle gold medallist Mack Horton — who left plenty in the tank in his heat, finishing second in 1:47.89 behind England’s James Guy (1:47.04) — and Alexander Graham, who was third in his heat in 1:47.35.

That means Chalmers will swim from lane six in tonight’s final, with Graham in lane two and Horton in lane one.

Scotland’s Duncan Scott was the fastest qualifier, winning heat three in 1:46.62 from Wales’ Calum Jarvis (1:47.08)

Charlie Peel 10.44am: Coach thrilled with pool effort

Australian swimming head coach Jacco Verhaeren was delighted with his team’s first day return of two gold, two silver, two bronze medals and a world record from the women’s 4x100m freestyle relay last night.

“It’s been a good day with two great gold medals,’’ Verhaeren said.

“We were already record holders but just to see that again shows we are world class. It’s great (Cate Campbell) has bounced back like that.”

Verhaeren said 400m freestyle gold medallist Mack Horton was “sensational’’ in the second half of his race.

He was also impressed with 200m freestyle silver medallist Ariarne Titmus who set a huge personal best time and just missed Emma McKeon’s national record.

“I think Ariane did a great job,’’ he said.

“Last year with that time she would have been world champion which shows her class.’’

Australian swim coach Jacco Verhaeren. Photo: AFP
Australian swim coach Jacco Verhaeren. Photo: AFP

Daniel Sankey 10.20am: Napper successful second time around

Australia’s Tegan Napper has successfully lifted 75kg in the snatch at her second attempt in the women’s 53kg weightlifting final.

The lift is just 2kg below Napper’s PB, which she failed to better with a shot at 78kg on her third and final attempt.

While close to a PB, Napper’s lift is still some distance behind the current leading competitors. Papual New Guinea’s Loa Kika Toua currently leads the competition with a lift of 80kg at her second attempt.

9.30am: Aussies off to winning start

Australia’s badminton mixed team has started Day 2 with a bang, with Ross Smith and Leanne Choo combining for a 2-0 win over the Ugandan pairing of Brian Kasirye and Aisha Nakiyemba.

Anthony Joe is next up for Australia in singles against Edwin Ekiring.

9.10am: McKeon chases record mark

Australian swimmer Emma McKeon is amazed, yet still a tad disappointed.

McKeon will today continue her audacious gold-medal hunt at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games as a world record holder.

Australai's Emma McKeon competes in the women’s 100m butterfly semi-finals yesterday. Photo: AFP
Australai's Emma McKeon competes in the women’s 100m butterfly semi-finals yesterday. Photo: AFP

But her feats in helping Australia create a fresh world-best mark in the 4x100m freestyle relay last night came after a slip in her bid to join swimming legends.

McKeon entered the Gold Coast Games seeking six gold medals — she already has one, but now there’s only a total of five available.

Only two Australian swimmers — Ian Thorpe and Susie O’Neill — have won six golds at a single Commonwealth Games.

The versatile McKeon is disappointed at her bronze medal in the 200m freestyle.

But that result is tempered by later winning relay gold as Australia sliced 0.6 seconds off the nation’s previous world record, set when winning Olympic gold in Rio in 2016.

“I’m definitely not happy with the 200 freestyle,” McKeon said. “But to get a world record ... it’s amazing.”

Australian swimmers collected two gold, three silver and four bronze medals on the opening night — the women’s relay triumph followed Mack Horton’s gold in the 400m freestyle.

McKeon returns to action tonight in the 100m butterfly final, one of nine gold medals on offer during the second night of swim competition. Horton will seek another gold in the 200m freestyle while compatriot Mitch Larkin is favoured in the 100m backstroke.

Other contenders include David Morgan in the 50m butterfly, and three Australians — Jessica Hansen, Leiston Pickett and Georgia Bohl — in the 50m breaststroke final.

Australia’s men’s 4x100m freestyle relay team will race in the last event tonight’s program.

— AAP

8.25am: ICYMI ... our two world records

Just in case you’ve been living under a rock and haven’t had a chance to feast your eyes on Australia’s two world records yesterday:

Here’s our 4x100m women’s freestyle relay team of Shayna Jack, Bronte Campbell, Emma McKeon and Cate Campbell smashing their world record, thanks to a 51.00 second split from Cate...

And here’s our men’s team pursuit team (Sam Welsford, Leigh Howard, Alex Porter and Kelland O’Brien) setting the boards on fire on their way to a world record and a gold medal at the Anna Meares Velodrome.

8.15am: Next challenge for ‘world’s fittest woman’

The self-styled fittest woman on the planet will look to add a weightlifting medal to her long and varied list of sporting achievements at the Commonwealth Games today.

Australia’s Tia-Clair Toomey, the winner of the 2017 CrossFit Games, competes in the women’s 58kg division on the Gold coast.

Toomey first made the switch to weightlifting at the Rio Olympics, where she was disappointed to finish 14th.

Australia's Tia-Clair Toomey in action at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Photo: AFP
Australia's Tia-Clair Toomey in action at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Photo: AFP

“What affected me was I was super nervous ... I put too much pressure on myself and I just wasn’t experienced in that type of world,” the 24-year-old said.

“That’s something I’m trying to apply to the Commonwealth Games, just taking it as another competition.

“I’ve also become a more mature athlete.”

Countrywoman Tegan Napper is also considered a good medal shot in the women’s 53kg division.

Having added the Commonwealth 400m freestyle title to the Olympic crown he won two years ago in Rio, Mack Horton will be gunning to make it two titles in as many days in the pool.

Horton’s toughest competition in the men’s 200m free is likely to come from countryman Kyle Chalmers.

Emma McKeon will be be favoured to claim gold in the women’s 100m butterfly, a day after finishing third in the 200m freestyle.

The other headline act will be former dual world champion James Magnussen — back from a year off dealing with shoulder issues — in the 4x100m freestyle relay. At the Anna Meares Velodrome, Annette Edmonson will be primed to go one better than her silver-medal position from four years ago in Glasgow in the women’s individual pursuit.

The spotlight will also shine on defending women’s sprint champion Stephanie Morton, 2014 keirin gold medallist Matthew Glaetzer and 2017 individual pursuit world champion Jordan Kerby.

— AAP

7.35am: Aussie squash players all about the team

Even in an individual sport, Donna Urquhart is all about the team.

Urquhart will meet Commonwealth Games debutante Christine Nunn in an all- Australian affair that headlines a critical day two of the squash today.

All six Aussie single players — including day-one star Rex Hedrick — can go one step closer to advancing to a medal round after progressing through to quarter-final match-ups.

Despite the possibility of her medal dream being dashed by a compatriot, Urquhart is already taking solace in knowing that at least one local hope is guaranteed a spot in the final eight.

“I was watching her play and I was inspired by her win as well,” Urquhart said. “It’s going to be good because no matter what we get another Aussie through to the next round. Christine’s playing really well. I know we’re both going to go out and give it our all tomorrow.”

Australia's Donna Urquhart hits a return during her 3-0 victory over Faiza Zafar of Pakistan yesterday. Photo: AFP
Australia's Donna Urquhart hits a return during her 3-0 victory over Faiza Zafar of Pakistan yesterday. Photo: AFP

Urquhart, the world No.16, is desperate to finish on the podium after controversially missing out on a singles spot in Glasgow following a last-minute selection debacle.

Australia also haven’t claimed a medal in the singles in the past two editions of the Games, with England’s Nick Matthew and Malaysia’s Nicol David dominating the event.

“There’s a few of us not seeded to win medals in the singles but we’re definitely capable of beating the people that are ranked above us and seeded ahead of us in there,” Urquhart said.

“We’ve got nothing to lose as far as the seedings go and we’re just going out there to our best and maybe this time around with the crowd behind us, we can make that happen.”

A win for Australia’s No.1 Ryan Cuskelly would set up a mouth-watering clash with Matthew.

— AAP

7am: Morton to roll out of Meares’ shadow

Cyclist Stephanie Morton will relish the pressure of expectation when her Commonwealth Games sprint title goes on the line today.

Stephanie Morton (left) gets a hug from Anna Meares after finishing 13th in the women’s sprint at the Rio Olympics. Photo: Adam Head
Stephanie Morton (left) gets a hug from Anna Meares after finishing 13th in the women’s sprint at the Rio Olympics. Photo: Adam Head

The defending Games champion and silver medallist at last month’s world titles will back up after blitzing the field alongside Kaarle McCulloch to win team sprint gold on day one.

Qualifying and finals will unusually be held on the same day at Brisbane’s Anna Meares Velodrome as part of a schedule that will also feature reigning Commonwealth Games keirin champion Matthew Glaetzer.

Morton, who is touted as the heir apparent to retired Olympic champion Anna Meares, says she will soak up the pressure with Tokyo 2020 in mind.

“It will be a big day ... I got that title four years ago, no-one can take that away from me, it’s just about regaining it, not defending it,” she said.

“I’ve said pressure makes diamonds, so I’ll be rolling with that motto tomorrow. But the end goal is Tokyo, so it’s about getting the little things right here and keeping that progression going towards the big dance.”

Annette Edmondson will also compete in the women’s 3000m individual pursuit, an event she won silver in four years ago.

World individual pursuit champion Jordan Kerby will tackle teammates Sam Welsford and Kelland O’Brien a day after they broke the world record together and secured gold for Australia over England in the team pursuit.

— AAP

6.45am: Day 2 — Aussies medal hopes today

WEIGHTLIFTING
• 9.30am: Women’s 53kg — Tegan Napper
• 2pm: Men’s 69kg — Brandon Wakeling
• 6.30pm: Women’s 58kg — Tia-Clair Toomey

GYMNASTICS
• 7.23pm: Women’s team final

SWIMMING
• 7.37pm: Men’s 50m butterfly final — Grant Irvine, David Morgan
• 7.41pm: Women’s 50m breaststroke final — Georgia Bohl, Jessica Hansen, Leiston Pickett
• 7.56pm: Men’s 200m freestyle final — Kyle Chalmers, Mack Horton, Alexander Graham
• 9.17pm: Men’s 400m IM final — Clyde Lewis, Travis Mahoney
• 9.36pm: Men’s 100m backstroke final — Mitch Larkin, Bradley Woodwards, Benjamin Treffers
• 9.51pm: Women’s 100m butterfly final — Maddie Groves, Emma McKeon, Brianna Throssell
• 10.07pm: Men’s 4x100m freestyle relay — Australia (Kyle Chalmers, Jack Cartwright, Cameron McEvoy, James Magnussen, James Roberts, Zac Incerti, Clyde Lewis)

CYCLING
• 7.30pm: Women’s 3000m individual pursuit medal rounds — Annette Edmondson, Rebecca Wiasak, Ashlee Ankudinoff
• 8.24pm: Men’s 4000m individual pursuit medal rounds — Sam Welsford, Jordan Kerby, Kelland O’Brien
• 8.48pm: Women’s sprint medal rounds — Kaarle McCulloch, Stephanie Morton
• 9.16pm: Men’s keirin medal rounds — Patrick Constable, Matt Glaetzer, Jacob Schmid

Additional reporting: AAP

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Original URL: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/2018-commonwealth-games/commonwealth-games-2018-day-2-stephanie-morton-to-step-out-of-anna-meares-shadow/news-story/d882f326fc3cf357a6c4397ede1138e9