The women of the Australian Swimming Team led the charge with three gold medals in a history-making and record-breaking Birmingham night.
In the first final of the night, the Men’s 200m Butterfly, Commonwealth Games debutants Bowen Gough(1:56.84) and Brendon Smith (2:00.24) put forward valiant efforts to finish fourth and eight respectively. New Zealand’s Lewis Clareburt took home gold followed by Chad le Clos of South Africa as runner-up.
The Women’s 100m Backstroke S8 saw Australian Isabella Vincent (1:27.47) place fifth in the race that was won by England’s Alice Tai. Teammate Ella Jones (1:28.94) had the sixth fastest time of the field in her first Commonwealth Games race.
The first Australian medals of the night were secured in the Men’s 100m Breaststroke SB8 with Timothy Hodge (1:14.19) taking silver and Blake Cochrane(1:18.97) Bronze. Hodge’s silver is his second medal of the Games having won gold in the Men’s 100m Backstroke S9 on night one.
In what was a history making race, Emma McKeon(23.99) became the greatest Commonwealth Games athlete of all time with a win in the Women’s 50m Freestyle.
The win takes McKeon’s Commonwealth Games gold medal haul to 11. More than any other athlete in the history of the Games.
“I just get in there and do my best. I take each race one at a time, obviously when I get in there I want to win. I feel like I’m a lot more relaxed here than last year, a lot happier,” McKeon said.
“I haven’t done as much work as I had this time last year but the place I’m in mentally is kind of showing in my performances.
“It’s really nice to have mum and dad here to be able to celebrate these kinds of moments with them. It was just as tough on them as it was on me not having them last year so it’s nice I can share this with them.”
In the same event Meg Harris (24.32) and Shayna Jack (24.36) picked up silver and bronze respectively making it the third all-Aussie podium in Birmingham.
The Women’s 200m Breaststroke saw Jenna Strauch (2:23.65) secure her first medal of the Games with a runner up finish behind South Africa’s Tatjana Schoenmaker. Aussies Abbey Harkin(2:24.07) and Taylor McKeown (2:25.50) finished fifth and six in the standings.
Kaylee McKeown (58.60) is taking home gold from Birmingham with a Commonwealth Games Record swim in the Women’s 100m Backstroke. It has been a massive 12 months for McKeown who has secured gold medals at the Olympic Games, World Championships and now the Commonwealth Games in the time period. Teammate Minna Atherton(1:00.02) finished just outside the podium, touching fourth.
In what was a nail biting finish, Zac Stubblety-Cook(59.52) made his luggage a little heavier with a silver in the Men’s 100m Breaststroke. Sam Williamson(59.82) joined his teammate on the podium touching third for the bronze.
Not settling for a gold medal, the Australian Women’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay team of Madison Wilson, Kiah Melverton, Mollie O’Callaghan and Ariarne Titmus (7:39.29) put on a show at Sandwell Aquatics centre and set a new World Record in the process.
The Australian Swimming Team has now won the relay in each of the last five Commonwealth Games.
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Day 3 Medals
Gold
E. McKeon – Women’s 50m Freestyle
K. McKeown – Women’s 100m Backstroke
M. Wilson, K. Melverton, M. O’Callaghan, A. Titmus – Women’s 4x200m Freestyle Relay
Silver
T. Hodge – Men’s 100m Breast SB8
M. Harris – Women’s 50m Freestyle
J. Strauch – Women’s 200m Breaststroke
Z. Stubblety-Cook – Men’s 100m Breaststroke
Bronze
B. Cochrane – Men’s 100m Breast SB8
S. Jack – Women’s 50m Freestyle
S. Williamson – Men’s 100m Breaststroke
