“To quote Mohammad Ali, we are the greatest”.
There was not a touch of arrogance in Cate Campbell’s quotation as she anchored the Australian women’s 4×100 freestyle relay team to a world record 3.30.08, more than five seconds ahead of second-placed England on day one of the swimming at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
Bronte Campbell led off, followed by Melanie Schlanger, Emma McKeon, and Cate. They were magnificent, and I can’t find any other time two sisters have shared a swimming world record.
The Australians kick-starting their swim campaign with three gold medals – Emma McKeon in the 200 freestyle, and Rowan Crothers in the S9 para 100 free.
For Emma, who had just watched her big brother David lead for most of the men’s 400 freestyle as the fastest qualifier, only to be pipped on the wall by Canadian Ryan Cochrane, so her win was something special.
“I’m normally at home watching all this on television,” was the 19-year-old’s summation, setting a new Games record with a PB of 1.55.57
In 1978 at the Edmonton Comm Games, Emma and David’s father Rod McKeon won the 400 and 200 free gold. Last night it was so close to a repeat in the family 36 years later.
For Crothers it was also special, but in another way. He was born 16 weeks premature and is suffering from cerebral palsy, yet he set a new world record of 54.58 to head an Australian whitewash with Matt Cowdrey silver, and Brenden Hall bronze.
The only other Australian medal in the pool was Bronte Barrett, with bronze in the 200 free.
Thankfully the nightmares of the 2012 London Olympics have been buried.
At the velodrome, it was fitting Australia’s flag-bearer Anna Meares was Australia’s first gold of the 20th Comm Games, taking out her third 500m time trial gold with a Games record 33.435, her fifth career gold taking her ahead of Australia’s previous most successful cyclist Kathy Watts.
Not to be outdone, the men’s 4000 team pursuit was won by the Australian quartet of Glenn O’Shea, Jack Bobridge, Luke Davison, and Alex Edmondson.
There was a stir at the entrance to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome when the knight himself was asked for ID by an officious female security guard.
Sir Chris, a Scot, is Great Britain’s most successful gold medal winner with six and a favourite son of Scotland. But he laughed off the incident by saying she was only doing her job.
The security guard was more accurate, telling the BBC – “My Mum will kill me”.
So she lives to see another day, as we look forward to Day 2.
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