It’s shaping as a golden night at the pool for Australia to start the 2018 Commonwealth Games swimming campaign, with seven medals up for grabs. Join The Roar for live coverage and updates from 7:30pm (AEST).
The headline events of the first night are shaping as the women’s 4×100-metre relay, men’s 400-metre freestyle final and women’s 200-metre freestyle final.
The relay will see Bronte and Cate Campbell team with Emma McKeon and Brianna Throssell in what should realistically be the fastest team in the world, let alone the Commonwealth.
McKeon and the Campbell sisters were part of the team who set a world record of 3.30.65 at the Rio Olympics and even though Throssell has joined the team, that gives up nothing.
The Aussies missed out on gold by just .3 of a second at the 2017 World Championships, but on that occasion were swimming without Throssell and Cate Campbell. Their closest Commonwealth counterpart were Canada, whose team of Sandrine Mainville, Chantal Van Landeghem, Kayla Sanchez and Penny Oleksiak were a distant two seconds behind.
In the men’s 400, Mack Horton enters as favourite. He missed out on gold at the worlds to Sun Yang by just under two seconds, but won’t have to compete with the Chinese swimmer on the Gold Coast.
He is in good form after winning the recent national championships, but is likely to face stiff opposition from teammates David McKeon and Jack McLoughlin, while England’s James Guy, who holds a season-best time just a second over that of Horton’s.
It’s another pair of Aussies who seem to hold the card in the women’s 200-metre freestyle, with Emma McKeon a heavy favourite ahead of young teammate Ariarne Titmus.
Elanor Faulkner is the top non-Aussie, with the Englishwoman holding a season best of 1.56.76, which is less than a second behind McKeon. The other to keep an eye on will be Canadian Taylor Ruck.
The women’s 400-metre IM final will also be played out, with Scot Hannah Miley, England’s Aimee Willmott and Canada’s Mary-Sophie Harvey going in as favourites.
Scot Ross Murdoch is a clear favourite in the men’s 200-metre breastroke, but will come under fire from Aussie Matt Harvey, who has a best time for the season just six-tenths of a second behind that of Murdoch.
The first para-sport medals will also be awarded in the pool with the men’s S14 200-metre freestyle and women’s S7 50-metre butterfly final being contested.
There are also a slew of semi-finals at spring distance on across the course of the evening.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the first night at the pool from 7:30pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
Jameswm
Guest
Got to love the relays.
Jameswm
Guest
51.00. Wow.
JoM
Guest
You can only break the 100m world record if you swim the first leg.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thanks for joining me this evening on The Roar for our live coverage of the 2018 Commonwealth Games swimming. Hopefully you enjoyed the call. I'll be back tomorrow for basketball from 5:30pm (AEST) between Australia and Canada, then the swimming again from 7:30pm (AEST). See you then and enjoy the rest of your evening.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thoughts on the first night at the pool Roarers?
Scott Pryde
Expert
Relays are always faster because they don't have the reaction time, but yeah, fair to say even with a normal reaction time to the gun, that's a world record.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Swimming night 1 medal count England - 6 (4 gold, 2 bronze) Australia - 9 (2 gold, 3 silver, 4 bronze) Canada - 4 (1 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze) Scotland - 2 (2 silver)
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Wait - apparently the current world record for women's 100m freestyle is 51.71. If Campbell did her leg in 51.00, that's just insane? Unless I've got something wrong?
Scott Pryde
Expert
Swimming - Night 1 results
Women's 400-metre Individual Medley final 1. Aimee Willmott (England) - 4.34.90 2. Hannah Miley (Scotland) - 4.35.16 3. Blair Evans (Australia) - 4.38.23 4. Eriak Seltenreich-Hodgson (Canada) - 4.38.51 5. Sarah Darcel (Canada) - 4.39.43 6. Abbie Wood (England) - 4.40.55 7. Meg Bailey (Australia) - 4.41.46 8. Mary-Sophie Harvey (Canada) - 4.43.51 Men's 400-metre freestyle final 1. Mack Horton (Australia) - 3.43.76 2. Jack McLoughlin (Australia) - 3.45.21 3. James Guy (England) - 3.45.34 4. Daniel Jervis (Wales) - 3.48.08 5. Jeremy Bagshaw (Canada) - 3.49.52 6. David McKeon (Australia) - 3.49.60 7. Welson Wee Sheng Sim (Malaysia) - 3.53.36 8. Stephen Milne (Scotland) - 3.55.01 Women's 200-metre freestyle final 1. Taylor Ruck (Canada) - 1.54.81 [Commonwealth Games record] 2. Ariarne Titmus (Australia) - 1.54.85 3. Emma McKeon (Australia) - 1.56.26 4. Eleanor Faulkner (England) - 1.57.72 5. Holly Hibbott (England) - 1.58.55 6. Leah Neale (Australia) - 1.58.76 7. Penny Oleksiak (Canada) - 1.59.55 8. Lucy Hope (Scotland) - 1.59.58 Men's S14 200-metre freestyle final 1. Thomas Hamer (England) - 1.55.88 [World record] 2. Liam Schluter (Australia) - 1.56.23 3. Daniel Fox (Australia) - 1.58.26 4. Mitchell Kilduff (Australia) - 1.59.55 5. Jack Thomas (Wales) - 2.05.38 6. Alex Rosser (Wales) - 2.05.60 7. Jin Ping Ting (Malaysia) - 2.20.93 8. Lian Chou Han (Singapore) - 2.25.22 Women's S7 50-metre butterfly final 1. Eleanor Robinson (England) - 35.72 2. Sarah Mehain (Canada) - 37.69 3. Tess Routliffe (Canada) - 37.85 4. Tiffany Thomas Kane (Australia) - 38.68 Men's 50-metre butterfly semi-final 1 1. Grant Irvine (Australia) - 23.79 - q 2. Dylan Carter (Trinidad and Tobago) - 23.90 - q 3. Sam Perry (New Zealand) - 23.99 - q 4. Jacob Peters (England) - 24.05 - q 5. Josiah Binnema (Canada) - 24.30 6. Bradley Tandy (South Africa) - 24.35 7. Scott McLay (Scotland) - 24.49 8. Abeku Jackson (Ghana) - 24.86 Men's 50-metre butterfly semi-final 2 1. Chad Le Clos (South Africa) - 23.53 - q 2. Ryan Coetzee (South Africa) - 23.79 - q 3. Daniel Hunter (New Zealand) - 23.93 - q 4. David Morgan (Australia) - 24.17 - q 5. Calum Bain (Northern Ireland) - 24.43 6. Sean Campsie (Scotland) - 24.48 7. Ralph Govieia (Zambia) - 24.49 8. Virdhawal Khade (India) - 24.50 Women's 50-metre breaststroke semi-final 1 1. Georgia Bohl (Australia) - 30.92 - q 2. Jessica Hansen (Australia) - 30.92 - q 3. Leiston Pickett (Australia) - 31.02 - q 4. Chloe Tutton (Wales) - 31.43 5. Rachel Nicol (Canada) - 31.87 6. Tilka Paljk (Zambia) - 32.05 7. Laura Kinley (Isle of Man) - 32.15 8. Molly Renshaw (England) - 32.18 Women's 50-metre breaststroke semi-final 2 1. Alia Atkinson (Jamaica) - 30.53 - q 2. Sarah Vasey (England) - 30.75 - q 3. Tatjana Schoenmaker (South Africa) - 31.01 - q 4. Faith Knelson (Canada) - 31.22 - q 5. Roanne Ho (Singapore) - 31.31 - q 6. Corrie Scott (Scotland) - 31.33 7. Jocelyn Ulyett (England) - 31.96 8. Bronagh Ryan (New Zealand) - 32.70 Men's 100-metre backstroke semi-final 1 1. Markus Thormeyer (Canada) - 53.86 - q 2. Luke Greenabnk (England) - 54.54 - q 3. Corey Main (New Zealand) - 55.02 - q 4. Xavier Castelli (Wales) - 55.13 - q 5. Calvyn Justus (South Africa) - 55.25 6. Jason Arthur (Ghana) - 56.85 7. Martin Binedell (South Africa) - 56.91 8. Thomas Hollingsworth (Guernsey) - 58.14 Men's 100-metre backstroke semi-final 2 1. Mitch Larkin (Australia) - 53.15 - q 2. Bradley Woodward (Australia) - 54.22 - q 3. Conor Ferguson (Northern Ireland) - 54.48 - q 4. Benjamin Treffers (Australia) - 54.62 - q 5. Craig McNally (Scotland) - 55.28 6. Elliot Clogg (England) - 55.42 7. Harry Shalamon (Jersey) - 56.47 8. Srihari Nataraj (India) - 56.65 Women's 100-metre butterfly semi-final 1 1. Emma McKeon (Australia) - 57.94 - q 2. Penny Oleksiak (Canada) - 58.29 - q 3. Brianna Throssell (Australia) - 58.38 - q 4. Erin Gallagher (South Africa) - 59.04 5. Harriet Jones (Wales) - 59.49 6. Helena Gasson (New Zealand) - 59.70 7. Emily Large (England) - 59.96 8. Laura Stephens (England) - 1.00.18 Women's 100-metre butterfly semi-final 2 1. Madeline Groves (Australia) - 57.22 - q [Commonwealth Games record] 2. Rebecca Smith (Canada) - 57.77 - q 3. Cahrlotte Atkinson (Isle of Man) - 58.04 - q 4. Alys Thomas (Wales) - 58.17 - q 5. Mabel Zavaros (Canada) - 58.62 - q 6. Keanna Macinnes (Scotland) - 59.55 7. Harriet West (Wales) - 59.93 8. Georgia Marris (New Zealand) - 1.00.58 Men's 200-metre breaststroke final 1. James Wilby (England) - 2.08.05 2. Ross Murdoch (Scotland) - 2.08.32 3. Matt Wilson (Australia) - 2.08.64 4. Andrew Willis (England) - 2.09.31 5. George Harley (Australia) - 2.10.04 6. Craig Benson (Scotland) - 2.10.09 7. Calum Tait (Scotland) - 2.11.67 8. Elijah Wall (Canada) - 2.11.94 Women's 4x100-metre freestyle relay final 1. Australia - 3.30.05 [World record] 2. Canada - 3.33.92 3. England - 3.38.40 4. New Zealand - 3.43.77 5. South Africa - 3.46.04Scott Pryde
Expert
That brings tonight's swimming to a close at the Aquatic Centre. What a night it was. Full results and a count of the medals to follow in a moment.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Women's 4x100-metre freestyle relay final results 1. Australia - 3.30.05 [World record] 2. Canada - 3.33.92 3. England - 3.38.40 4. New Zealand - 3.43.77 5. South Africa - 3.46.04
Scott Pryde
Expert
That's just nuts.
Scott Pryde
Expert
That was a seriously awesome performance from the Aussies. McKeon's third leg won that race - already with four races in the legs today, she held off and extended the gap to the world champion. Then it was Campbell to bring it home for a world record. Sensational performance from Australia.
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
Cate Campbell's 51.00 is the fastest relay split in the history of swimming, apparently!
Liam Salter
Roar Guru
MY GOD!! What a performance!!
Scott Pryde
Expert
Canada took no time at all to lose the lead they had built and Bronte Campbell has taken a lead of nine tenths of a second into the end of her first 50. She takes off up the pool at the end and the Aussies are under world record pace as Emma McKeon jumps into the water third. She has a body length and a half over Canada's Olekisak. This is a great swim from McKeon, who is still holding 2.22 seconds halfway through her. McKeon looks laboured, but she is extending her lead ahead of the Canadian world champion. Cate Campbell into the water last and she can put it on cruise control now as Australia take the win. They are only just outside world record pace wiith Taylor Ruck bringing Canada home for a silver. Cate is going to bring it home with a world record! Stop the clock! 3.30.05! Australia have smashed the world record by six-tenths of a second. Canada through in second, England third.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Women's 4x100-metre freestyle relay final It's Jack to start for Australia and she has made a good one as well, popping up behind the English and Canadian swimmer, but then racing into the lead. By the end of the first 50, Jack has a .45 second lead. She has flown through that first 50 and has a solid first turn as well. Zevnik of Canada has actually brought them into the lead at the end of the first 100.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Absolutely! Love 'em.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Women's 4x100-metre freestyle relay final 2. South Africa (Emma Chelius, Erin Gallagher, Marlies Ross, Dune Coetzee) 3. England (Siobhan Marie O'Connor, Freya Anderson, Anna Hopkin, Eleanor Faulkner) 4. Australia (Shayna Jack, Bronte Campbell, Emma McKeon, Cate Campbell) 5. Canada (Alexia Zevnik, Kayla Sanchez, Penny Oleksiak, Taylor Ruck) 6. New Zealand (Laticia Transom, Georgia Marris, Carina Doyle, Helena Gasson)
Scott Pryde
Expert
So then, the night finishes with a relay. Shayna Jack has replaced Brianna Throssell in the Aussie team.