Enjoy some of the best day 8 photos here.
Day eight has been a real blast, maybe not for Zharnel Hughes who had that 200m gold crown taken off him, owing to him stumbling into the adjacent lane, one belonging to Trinidad’s Jereem Richards. Whether he will be disqualified or not remains to be seen – England have appealed. Elsewhere, another great day for the hosts, although they were denied a clean sweep in the beach volleyball. Another gold in the pool for Jack Laugher in the diving, and an appearance from Usain Bolt to boot. Thanks for your company. Here’s our report from the Gold Coast:
Australia win women's 10m platform gold!
Melissa Wu takes the final medal of day eight, edging out Meaghen Benfeito, of Canada, and England’s Lois Toulson, who takes bronze. Wu’s score of 360.40 is enough to take gold from Benfeito, who registered 359.75 points. It’s not been dull on the Gold Coast!
Day eight is almost done and dusted, with just the women’s 10m platform to be finalised. The images of Zharnel Hughes being told about his disqualification, a few minutes after completing a full lap of honour, was absolutely excruciating. The medal ceremony has been postponed until tomorrow, as the panel assess England’s appeal.
That was a stonking run by Langford, though. Meanwhile, England are reportedly appealing Zharnel Hughes’s disqualification ...
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Kenya win men's 800m gold!
No drama, this time. Wycliffe Kinyamal wins fair and square. Kyle Langford, of England, is shaking his head, gutted after taking a close silver. Kinyamal gets over in 1.45.11min, while Luke Mathews bags bronze for the host nation.
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In the diving, the 10m platform is coming to its climax. Meaghan Benfeito looks set to claim gold for Canada, while Melissa Wu, of Australia and Lois Toulson, the girlfriend of fellow diver Jack Laugher who has two golds to his name already on the Gold Coast, could yet also get on the podium. Back to the men’s 800m final ...
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Dina Asher-Smith, who unsurprisingly is in great spirits, speaks, after nabbing bronze in the 200m. “I was running my race plan, I knew I had more to give down the home straight,” she says. “I would never say never to [doing 400m] but if you asked my coach now, he would tell you I’d be complaining and moaning the whole way.”
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Confusion reigns, with Zharnel Hughes still out on his lap of honour ... who’s going to tell him? You or me? He will be gutted.
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Trinidad win gold after England are disqualified from 200m!
But, hang on a minute ... Zharnel Hughes has been disqualifed! He’s been penalised for running right on the edge of the lane, impeding into Jereem Richard’s lane, and not necessarily for his arms appearing to make contact with the Trinidad athlete. That’s gutting for Hughes, after a corking run. The one positive is that Leon Reid sneaks on to the podium, for bronze.
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Zharnel Hughes steamrollers towards the line, he almost loses it at the last as he tired but an incredible race by the 22-year-old, born in Anguilla, means he clinches England’s 29th gold of these Games in some style. Trinidad’s Jereem Richards is neck and neck alongside him, with his arms flailing. Aaron Brown, of Canada, finishes third. Richards did not look best pleased with Hughes about that ...
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The men’s 200m final is on the way now. Usain Bolt, who holds the world record 19.19sec for this discipline, is among those watching on. Zharnel Hughes, of England, and Leon Reid, representing Northern Ireland, both run at the Carrara Stadium. It’s always a showpiece event ...
Australia win women's discus gold!
Dani Stevens smashes the field with a Games’ record of 68.26m, ahead of India’s Seema Punia and Navjeet Dhillon to sit top of the podium.
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Before the men’s 200m final and 800m final, let’s take a look at the diving. In the women’s 10 platform, Canada are looking good, with Benfeito and Toth leading the way, ahead of England’s Robyn Birch.
The Bahamas win women's 200m gold!
Shaunae Miller-Uibo gets over the line fastest, in 22.09sec, setting a new Commonwealth Games record, while Thompson, the Olympic champion, misses out but her Jamaican compatriot, Shericka Jackson nabs silver. England’s Asher-Smith gets bronze in a great 200m field.
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The women’s 200m final is imminent, followed by the mens’ event. The field for the women’s event includes Dina Asher-Smith, as well as Bianca Williams representing England. Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson will probably start as the favourite after a blistering heat, finishing in 21.66sec.
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Canada win women's beach volleyball gold!
Pavan and Humana-Paredes, the top-ranked pairing in the world, deny Australia a double win on the sand on day eight.
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KJT, sitting pretty in top spot in the heptathlon after day one, speaks. So Johnson-Thompson is the overnight leader, while 18-year-old Niamh Emerson finishes the day in a very respectable fourth. The long jump is first up on Friday morning, on day two. “I’m happy to finish day one in the lead but it’s been a bit of a ropey day. I didn’t expect to be in my best shape in April but I think I underestimated just how hard it would be.” Emerson adds: “I always expect more [of myself] but I’m really pleased. I just want to enjoy it tomorrow as much as I did today because I can get nervous.”
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Australia win men's pole vault gold!
Kurtis Marschall with a beautiful third and final jump to clear 5.70m. He celebrates deliriously, high-fiving fellow competitors and his coach along the way in front of 30,000-odd Aussies. Great scenes. Shawn Barber, of Canada ends up clinching silver, with Cutts taking bronze.
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A great moment for England’s Sophie Hahn, up on the podium, as she collects her gold medal from the T38 100m after a bursting sprint earlier.
Still to come? The women’s 200m final, men’s 200m final and the men’s 800m final, so plenty of medals still up for grabs. Elsewhere, there’s the 10m platform women’s final while the beach volleyball is coming towards a close, with Canada looking good for victory in the gold-medal match. They hold a very slender 1-0 lead on the sand.
Canada win long jump gold!
Christabel Nettey takes top spot, with a mammoth first leap ultimately securing victory. Brooke Stratton earns silver, and England’s Shara Proctor a bronze, with the latter pulling out, presumably through injury, of having a final jump, a last tilt towards toppling Nettey.
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In the pole vault, Shaw Barber cannot clear 5.70m. Can Kurtis Marschall? Elsewhere, we’re in the final round of the long jump, with Lorraine Ugen registering a mighty 6.69m, to move up to fourth for now.
KJT storms her heat, with a lightning time of 23.57sec, leaving the rest of the field in her wake. That’s over 1,000 priceless points to take into tomorrow, when the heptathlon comes to a climax.
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The heptathlon continues, with the final event of day one on the track. Katarina Johnson-Thompson is among those looking for a timely boost in the 200m heats at the Carrara Stadium. Here we go ...
On the beach, Australia trail Canada early on the women’s finals after losing the first set. Taliqua Clancy and Mariafe Artacho del Solar have it all to do. Meanwhile, England captain Alex Danson has been speaking after a galling defeat to New Zealand in the hockey semis. “We are devastated,” Danson says. “We played a fantastic game and I’m so proud of how we came out. We have to hold our head and come out fighting for the bronze.”
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It is the end of the Commonwealth road for England’s Luke Cutts, he fails to clear 5.55m but his hair-themed colleague, Shaw Barber, of Canada, clears that height with his third and final attempt, to leave him in with a sniff of a medal. Adam Hague, another Englishman, also fails to clear 5.55m. Cutts is line for a bronze medal in the pole vault as it stands but he may get bumped down the pecking order.
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Marschall goes one better! He’s just cleared 5.55m to jump to the top of the leaderboard. In the long jump, Shara Proctor has registered an impressive 6.75m but it’s Canada, through Christabel Nettey, who leads with 6.84m.
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Back towards the track and field, and the pole vault, where Kurtis Marschall, the 20-year-old Australian, has just quite comfortably cleared the 5.45m. He’s all smiles. Adam Hague, of England, also flies clear.
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New Zealand have done it! They prevail against England on penalties, winning 2-1, with Stacey Michelsen’s superb, dinked finish eventually getting the better of Maddie Hinch in goal. NZ will compete in the final for gold or silver, while England will have to settle for a place in the bronze-medal match.
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England and New Zealand are level pegging, but if the Kiwis can score with their fifth and final penalty then they’ll progress to the final ...
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England are up and running, Martin scores the first ...
These are penalties with a twist, Maddie Hinch, the England keeper is playing the role of Jerzy Dudek ... no one has scored yet.
In the hockey, it’s quite the stalemate between England and New Zealand, with Maddie Hinch making a stunning save to deny the Kiwis victory. Normal time ends 0-0, after a breathless match, which means we are heading for another penalty shootout. When England ousted NZ in Rio, that was also on penalties. “Both teams will have done huge amounts of homework,” says Kate Richardson-Walsh, the former skipper.
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England win men's diving gold!
Two medals in two days! Jack Laugher wins by 66.70 points, smashing the 3m springboard in the pool. Phillipe Gagne takes second for Canada, James Connor earns Australia bronze. Ross Haslam, one of the brothers from Sheffield, has to settle for fourth and Heatly, of Scotland, fifth.
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South Africa win T12 100m gold!
Not as fast as his qualifying time but gold for Ndodomzi Ntutu. Langenhoven makes it a South Africa one-two – they are speed merchants, aren’t they – while Malaysia earn bronze.
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In the diving, Jack Laugher has established an unassailable lead, he’s a few minutes away from a fourth Commonwealth Games title. Laugher’s on 519.40, way ahead of second-place James Connor on 438.00. In the pole vault, things are looking good for Luke Cutts, who has cleared a season’s best 5.45m to stay in medal territory.
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Ah, drat. Shara Proctor’s first attempt in the long jump final ends in a foul. Still 0-0 as such, and a helluva way to go yet. Lorraine Ugen set a 6.35m while Jazmin Sawyers is up next ...
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“The Pocket Rocket does it again, in blistering form – absolutely unstoppable,” emails Chris Page, of the electric Sophie Hahn. “She has the full set of titles at this distance.”
England win T38 100m gold!
Sophie Hahn earns England’s first gold on this track at Carrara. “I’m so, so happy,” she says. “The key thing is to be consistent.” Australian Rhiannon Clarke took silver and Olivia Breen claimed Wales’ 25th medal at these Games after earning bronze. Now, for the long jump final, with Shara Proctor among those competing ...
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Katarina Johnson-Thompson looks pretty nonplussed out there, throwing a 11.54m in her third and final throw. Whether that’s going to be enough to keep her dreams of gold alive remains to be seen. In terms of the shot put itself, that score sees her way down in ninth. After three events, she’s down in third and with it all to do if she wants more than that.
In the diving, Jack Laugher is on top spot as it stands, with a 345.20. James Heatly, of Scotland, had jumped into second, only for Phillipe Gagne, of Canada, to go one better. Matthew Carter is trying to redeem himself after that earlier mistake in the pool.
Australia win women's bowls gold!
The Aussies breeze past Scotland 21-12 to clinch triples gold. The Scots take silver, while England beat Canada for bronze.
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British Virgin Islands win men's 400m hurdles!
Kyron McMaster earns the island country’s first medal of these Games, running a time of 48.25sec. The Bahamas take silver, Jaheel Hyde bags bronze for Jamaica. It is some story for McMaster, the 21-year-old who lost his coach, Xavier Samuels, last year, who died in Hurricane Irma. “I still think and talk about him every day,” McMaster said. “I even got a tattoo on my inner arm made of his favourite phrase, which was ‘guidance’. Every day I look at it and it acts as motivation.”
Jack Green, of England, takes a very respectable fourth. “I run for a living which is ridiculous,” Green says. “I’m very lucky to do what I do.”
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It’s not massive, Johnson-Thompson appears to play it a little safe but she gets the white flag and registers a 11.36m. She could do with finding the 12m mark in her third and final throw but she’s still primed for a tilt at a podium finish in the heptathlon, which finishes on Friday.
Here comes KJT, for take two in the shot put ...
A couple of untimely errors in the diving has left Jack Haslam and Matthew Carter with work to do. A false start for the former and a messy exit from the somersault means Laugher is sitting pretty at the top.
Jamaica win women's 400m hurdles gold!
Janieve Russell runs a slick 54.33sec. Eilidh Doyle takes silver for Scotland while Wenda Nel, of South Africa, earns bronze. Russell had to settle for bronze four years but this time she has gone not one better but taken the top prize. A great run by Russell, the 24-year-old.
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In the diving, after two of six attempts: Laugher scores 94.50 with his second dive (3.5 reverse somersaults) to take a big lead. James Connor of Australia and Ross Haslam are in second on 141.90. James Heatly is 4th on 140.70, with Yona Knight-Wisdom just behind.
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Ah, that’s not the start Johnson-Thompson was after in the shot put, fouling with her first effort (of three). Time for the women’s 400m hurdles ...
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In the pool, Jack Laugher has work to do. Matthew Carter, the 17-year-old Australian leads the way with a stonking 81.60 score. In the shot put, the heptathlon is back under way, with Niamh Emerson registering a 11.86m, with Katarina Johnson-Thompson and co still to come.
“How’s England getting on in women’s triples lawn bowls medal match?” tweets Jennifer. They lead Canada 16-12 after 14 ends. They led 10-3 after seven ends but have been pegged back a little. It’s looking good though in the bronze-medal match for Sian Honnor’s team.
Jack Haslam kickstarts the 3m springboard, with a healthy score of 63.00. He is one of three Englishman in the final, alongside Jack Laugher and his brother, Ross. In the hockey, it’s still 0-0, with three minutes left of the 1st. In the lawn bowls triples, Australia are heading for a 60th gold.
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There is plenty of athletics, all manner of medals on the way but first England are under way against New Zealand in the hockey. A few minutes into the first period, England are enjoying a decent spell of possession.
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Everybody’s limbering up, from Jack Laugher, ready for his 3m springboard final in the pool to England’s hockey team, who are preparing to do battle – again – with New Zealand in the women’s semis. Alex Danson will make her 300th international appearance in that duel. The 10m platform complete the day, as far as diving is concerned anyway.
On Danson, the 32-year-old from Southampton, her former team-mate and captain Kate Richardson-Walsh tweeted: “A true inspiration, authentic leader and best striker in the world. A lioness on the pitch, her desire to better herself has never lessened.” High praise indeed.
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So, the men’s pole vault final will be upon us in no time. Adam Hague and Luke Cutts will compete for England, but Australia’s Kurtis Marshall will enter as the favourite. Another event, wrestling, has finished for the day, with joy for Georgina Nelthorpe and Curtis Dodge, who both bag bronze medals. Meanwhile, here’s a story to warm the cockles a little:
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India win wrestling gold!
As thought, Kumar Sushil notches another success for India at the Carrara Sports Arena, this time in the men’s 74kg freestyle. He batters South Africa’s Johannes Botha, to clinch victory inside all of 90 seconds. Lovely jubbly. A little earlier, Curtis Dodge bagged a bronze for Wales, with a win over Nigeria’s Assizecourt.
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KJT speaks about being numero uno. “I’m never normally in this position, normally heptathlon’s on the first day or one of the first events,” she says, given her lead after two events and the shot up next. “I’ve been itching to get going in the village, watching everybody. I like being the favourite because that means everyone rates you and I’m enjoying it.”
The big one is coming up in the hockey shortly, with England taking on New Zealand in the semi-finals. The Kiwis are unbeaten in the tournament so far and are the top scorers but England sent them packing, via a penalty shootout in Glasgow in 2014.
A couple of sightings, if you like, today: Prince Edward is casting his eye over the lawn bowls, where it’s Australia v Scotland in the gold-medal match, and on the adjacent green, it’s Canada v England in the triples bronze-medal tie. Elsewhere, Usain Bolt is limbering up to dish out the 200m medals a little later on, that gets started approaching 1pm (BST).
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It is less than an hour until Katarina Johnson-Thompson, one of England’s favourites to boost the medal haul, continues her assault on ensuring a podium finish in the heptathlon. The 25-year-old leads after two events, with the shot put up next after a brilliant 1.87m in the high jump and fourth-place in the 100m hurdles. Nothing will be wrapped today, however, with the the long jump, javelin and 800m not until Friday.
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In the badminton doubles, Gabrielle and Chris Adcock are taking to the court, ready to duel with Singapore in the round of 16. At the Oxenford studios, that’s the squash courts, Wales’ double-act of Creed and Evans are taking on India in the men’s quarter-finals. It could be a good day for Wales, who are also in action in the wrestling as we speak, with Curtis Dodge vying for bronze in the 74kg freestyle.
Canada win wrestling golds!
Diana Weicker clinches victory in the 53kg Nordic system wrestling – that discipline sounds lively. Silver for India, bronze for Nigeria. And Canada promptly rack up another gold moments later, albeit in the 76kg, as Erica Wiebe retains her title, with a mammoth arm throw doing the business.
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The Australians are in for a real feast in terms of beach volleyball action today, with the women’s singles taking place in a little over an hour. That’s after the men have already bagged a gold medal on the sand. Just before then, all eyes will be on Jack Laugher, in the 3m springboard after a sterling day in the pool after that immaculately clean dive yesterday in the 1m. Around the same time, the men’s pole vault gets under way.
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India win wrestling gold!
A flurry of medals ... as Rahul Aware bags the top prize, ahead of Steven Takahashi of Canada, in the 57kg freestyle. I make that a 13th gold of the Games for India on the Gold Coast. The men’s 74kg event is coming up in around an hour, with Sushil Kumar competing for another India gold.
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Cyprus win gymnastics gold!
It’s joy for Diamanto Evripidou in the individual all-around event. Canada take silver through Katherine Uchida while Malaysia seal bronze. Down in seventh, a remarkable feat for England’s Hannah Martin, with 15-year-old making a big impression at her maiden Games.
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England return to action in the netball, v Jamaica, on Saturday:
From a frenetic finish on the sand to the calm, serene surrounds at the lawn bowls, where Australia are on the hunt for more silverware, against Scotland, in the women’s triples gold-medal match. The Aussies are in front and looking good. Elsewhere, England’s Paul Drinkhall is out of the men’s singles table tennis although Liam Pitchford has progressed to the last eight, as has team-mate Samuel Walker.
Australia win beach volleyball gold!
Wow, some finish, with McHugh and Schumann taking victory. Jubilant scenes around the court. Ice running through their veins in what was a mightily nervy, tense finish. That’s gold number 59 for the Aussies ...
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Another magic moment as Schumann nips over the net to pull Australia back into it, before rifling an ace over to get the scores back to 12-12 in the third set. It’s going to be a nervy finish, with both nations locked on points in this gold medal match on the sand.
A reminder that England won their first ever Commonwealth Games medals in the women’s mountain biking this morning, with Annie Last taking gold. “This an amazing feeling,” she said. “Thank you to everybody who has helped me along the road.”
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That beach volleyball clash between two heavyweights, Australia and Canada, is still unfolding. Canada take the second set 21-18 with Chris McHugh struggling to deal with a smashing forehand. His partner, Schumann has played a blinder, though, and it’s level at 1-1. There’s a toss of a coin to see who will win the serve, and decide the ends.
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Hello. What’s coming up in this bumper day eight? The main focus is again, like yesterday, in the track and field, with 10 medals to come at the Carrara Stadium alone, including the men’s 200m and 800m finals. There’s also more diving, with the 3m springboard and the 10m platform final, with Jack Laugher, of England, the Olympic champion returning in the former after victory yesterday in the 1m. Plus, beach volleyball and wrestling.
Talking of the sand, here’s a dispatch from Martha Kelner:
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Well look, it’s all too much for your humble correspondent here. Richard Parkin signing off to go bathe my typing fingers and enjoy a nice crisp glass of milk.
You’ll be in excellent hands though as the indefatigable Ben Fisher takes over the joystick. Thanks for your company today; from the lawn bowls to the mountain biking and now to the beach volleyball – what a day of close encounters it has been!
A huge night (in Australia) still in store, so keep that sly browser open and your alt-tab fingers at the ready in the office this morning wherever in the world you’re following this coverage.
Men’s beach volleyball – gold medal match
Well, it’s the type of encounter you’d hope for with gold on the line, so far. We’re halfway through the first set and it’s Australia leading 11-10, in a contest that’s ebbed and flowed.
Sam Pedlow has been really firing in his serves today, cracking 80+km on multiple occasions, but the Aussie duo are scrambling well.
A bit of verbals here with Canada challenging the umpires call, with the score blowing out to 15-12 to the host nation. The reply shows Pedlow was absolutely correct, it’s just touched the tape – how crucial could this prove?!
The point is revoked, and then Canada move to lock it up at 14-14. And they’ve got a bit of momentum here, taking the lead 16-15. Australia respond with a tactical time out.
It’s a vocal home crowd, but McHugh and Schumann need to make sure they don’t get too overwrought by the energy on the Coolangatta beachfront.
Very delicately poised here now as Damian Schumann conceals a delicate drop shot, before Chris McHugh fires an unstoppable serve. They head back into the lead, 18-17!
Wowee – what a point that was; Australia leading 19-18 and the teams have produced the rally of the game! It ends with a Schumann spike, and Australia go 20-18.
Pedlow then saves one set-point; but it’s there! To the delight of the home crowd, Canada have conceded their first set of the tournament, and Australia go to their seats for a well-earned drink, grabbing the first 21-19.
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Back at the Coomera Indoor Sports Centre where Cyprus’ Evripidou has navigated her third rotation with aplomb in the rhythmic gymnastics. A slight fumble with the clubs, but not obvious errors and the Cypriot has come through with a very credible 13.850. She won’t top the round, but she doesn’t cede too much ground to Canada’s Uchida, with one apparatus left to complete.
Some fascinating choices of music in this round too – Canada’s Sophie Crane with the classic styles of the Can Can, as performed by London’s Philharmonic Orchestra, Singapore’s Aiko Tan feeling a little bit more Pitbull & J-Lo inclined. No deductions from the judges for that error though, you’ll be relieved to hear.
Bronze for New Zealand - men's beach volleyball!
Well, they started strongly and they finished in similar fashion, the brothers from Aeteroa have ended the run of England’s Sheaf and Gregory, 21-13, 21-15.
Some terrific fight from the English duo who at one stage looked like they were out of answers, as Messieurs O’Dea wracked up 6-7 unanswered points, to finish more respectably.
Sam O’Dea leading the way from the net with eight blocks – the 6 ft 6 and taller of the two has led the tournament for blocks, so a sense of reprieve for the Kiwis after a disappointing loss in the semi-final with Canada.
Canada are on the sand now as they take on Australia’s Chris McHugh and Damien Schumann in the gold medal battle. Watch this space!
Rhythmic gymnastics – individual all-round final
Well, what a routine that was! Already sitting nicely after the hoop routine, Cyprus’s Diamanto Evripidou has blown away her opponents with a stunning performance with the ball. She impressed in qualification and came in as the favourite but it’s one thing doing it away from the cameras and doing it when it matters.
It’s an apparatus the Cypriot favours but the judges have awarded her a 15.100 – for context the next best was Wales’ Laura Halford with a 13.300 – so at the halfway point Evripidou sits with 28.900, with Canada’s Uchida a full 1.650 points behind and Malaysia’s Sie Yan Koi in third.
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Men’s beach volleyball – bronze medal match, England v New Zealand
We’re nearing the end of the first set in the men’s beach volleyball, where English duo Chris Gregory and Jake Sheaf have a battle of their hands in the form of Kiwi brothers Ben and Sam O’Dea.
If you missed Martha Kelner’s piece, there’s been quite a remarkable road to get here for the English team, and there are definitely plenty in the crowd here roaring the popular duo on.
It’s 12-19 to the Kiwis however who are looking to round out this first set. New Zealand miss a chance or two to close it, but a big block by Ben O’Dea at the net and they’ve clinched it 21-13. A big twenty minutes coming up here on the sands of Coolangatta.
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Around the grounds – and a Bolt from the blue!
So, a quick skirt around what else is currently going down. We’re down to the round of 16 clashes in the badminton, Wales has edged Ghana for 9th place in the women’s hockey after a 2-0 shoot out victory, South Africa has shaded England for the bronze in the triple’s para lawn bowls 16-13, 5th-10th places have been resolved in the netball with South Africa ending the tournament of surprise packets Uganda to claim 5th, Malawi have grabbed 7th over Northern Ireland and Scotland have just downed Barbados to finish 9th.
In the rhythmic gymnastics Canada’s Katherine Uchida is the provisional leader at the conclusion of the hoop element, with the Cypriot duo of Viktoria Skittidi and Diamanto Evripidou in second and third. England’s Hannah Martin and Australia’s Enid Sung are in 5th and 6th respectively, with a plethora of squash and table tennis events still on the go.
In terms of medals, the only breaking news is a gold to Singapore’s appropriately named Martina Veloso who made quick work of her opposition in the women’s 50m rifle prone final. India’s Tejaswini Sawant and Scotland’s Seonaid McIntosh claimed silver and bronze, but it was Veloso with a Games record score that won the day, backing up her earlier win in the 10m rifle to deliver Singapore its second gold of the Games!
Oh, and breaking news that half of the Games journalists have been seen abandoning their posts with news that Usain Bolt has made an appearance at the media centre. We’ll await to see if our eyes at the scene, the redoutable Mike Hytner, will be able to secure a selfie or at least ask a question like “Mr Bolt, where did you learn to run so fast?” etc. You do not want to go to the bathroom any time soon.
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Women’s heptathlon – disaster for Stainton, KJT leads
An update now from the track where we’re two events down in the women’s heptathlon.
Gold medal favourite England’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson has taken an early lead with the conclusion of the 110m hurdles and high jump elements.
Australian Celeste Mucci led after the hurdles from Canada’s Angela Whyte with Johnson-Thompson finishing fifth, but disaster for her compatriot Katie Stainton, whose entire event was over inside five seconds after a very nasty fall.
A distraught Stainton was comforted by KJT as she discovered that she’d been subsequently disqualified for not finishing.
KJT then cleared 1.87m in the high jump to take the overall lead from Canada’s Nina Schultz, with Mucci in third.
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Final lap drama – New Zealand grab top spot in the mountain bike!
What a battle this has become. We were all waiting for the fireworks between the defending champion and the silver medallist from the Glasgow Games, but it took a very unexpected turn, with Sam Gaze suffering a mechanical!
The last thing you want as three cyclists close at the medals end of the race. Cooper attacks, he sees the opportunity and he drops Hatherly to see if he can ride to the finish; there’s still about a circuit left to race.
Gaze loses about 30 seconds, and he’s staring at now having to come through the South African to get back on the tail of Cooper.
It looks Cooper’s from here; but would you believe, Gaze is going for this! Hatherly very sportingly allows his opponent past him – he could have used the narrow section of the course to block and frustrate, but he’s left him past. Nervous times for Cooper now as Gaze is absolutely mowing him down. What a ride this is turning into!
They’re into the velodrome now, it’s elbow-to-elbow, the two Kiwis are really throwing their machines about, who has the top end pace to finish this? Gaze is the quicker of the two, but has he expended too much energy with that remarkable catch up ride!
They’re on the final stretch; and it’s Gaze, it’s Gaze with the jump! What a remarkable ride; he’s mown his compatriot down and now he’s grabbed the gold!
What an awkward busride home that’s going to be – but it’s New Zealand gold and silver, with South Africa’s Hatherly grabbing the bronze. High mountain-biking drama in Nerang!
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Gold for Australia in the para-lawn bowls!
Wowee. What a spectacular finish to the gold medal antipodean clash over at Broadbeach!
We left it with the Kiwis deliberating long and hard; but would you believe with the very last bowl of the match Australia have snatched the result!
It was the veteran, Ken Hanson, on the 15th end with a clutch bowl. Sixty-eight years young; he’s become Australia’s oldest ever Commonwealth Games gold medallist!
Commiserations to the Kiwi trio, they fought so valiantly, but they’ll have to settle for the silver. High bowling drama!
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Men’s cross-country mountain bike
We’re back with the men’s cross-country mountain biking, where it’s turned into a three-horse race with third of the Kiwi triumvirate Oliver off the back. Ciao, Lepidus, it’s time for Octavian and Mark Antony to battle out the rest of this one.
South Africa’s Hatherly continues to be the fly in the ointment on a New Zealand 1-2-3, he’s lurking with intent with the medallists from Glasgow appear to be more concerned with marking each others’ attacks.
Australia’s McConnell appears to have slipped off the chasing pack, so the Glasgow bronze medallist is out of the reckoning here. England’s Clacherty and Canada’s Bouchard remain locked around a minute back as they joustle for fourth and fifth.
It’s Cooper still leading, with Gaze on his shoulder, Hatherly sitting back, patiently watching them both.
Lawn bowls – open B6/B7/B8 triples gold medal match
We’ve got a humdinger over at Broadbeach Bowls Club as well, as two other tiny islands with great sporting antagonism are locked in a classic. With only one end to play it’s Australia 12, New Zealand 13 here.
The Kiwis took an early lead, before Australia pushed out to a very comfortable lead, 10-3 after seven ends. A remarkable five-point end brought New Zealand charging back into this contest, and they’ve really quietened this parochial home crowd snatching the lead, right at the death!
How will this one unfold?! There’s some tense tactic talk happening between every bowl. Do the Kiwis drive? Do they bowl close? Do they protect the shot ball?
Men’s cross-country mountain bike
And we’re about half-way through the event over at Nerang, where it’s New Zealand poised nicely at this stage to dominate the medals.
South Africa’s Alan Hatherly is the odd one out with a Kiwi trio of Anton Cooper, Sam Gaze and Ben Oliver hunting as a pack.
There’s almost a minute between our leading pack and the rest of the field, with England’s Fraser Clacherty, Australia’s Dan McConnell and Canada’s Leandre Bouchard leading their nations’ hopes respectively.
Tasty little Guernsey v Jersey subplot here by the way, with the battle for the channels taking place about 3 minutes back in 10-12th place.
Some great names on some of the technical elements of this course, by the way, let’s hope none of the riders come unstuck on ‘Grumpy Wombat Hollow’ etc.
Cooper and Gaze battled it out for gold and silver at the Glasgow Games, will we see a repeat of that battle here today?
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And to take stock of where the overall medal tally is presently at:
It continues to be a brighter than perhaps even expected showing for the host nation, with local reporters crowing over Australia’s dominance in the pool, even against the various countries of Great Britain when combined.
Over thirty nations have now got among the medals, but there are plenty of intriguing battles within battles. Which of the channel islands, you ask, will breakthrough first, as Guernsey and Jersey resume their ancient hatred. Don’t expect any assistance on that front from Sark – they didn’t even front for the games, the slackers.
Still, plenty more action to come – and as we’ve seen already, dramatic upsets are never far away, such is the drama of the Commonwealth Games.
Welcome to day eight
Kia ora koutou! It’s another day of radiant sunshine Down Under and there’s plenty more gold to go around today.
If you missed some of the overnight action it was a terrific night led by Australia’s field athletes, a strong night for England’s diving team, with Tracey Neville’s netballers also daring to dream of gold.
Martha Kelner’s also got a lovely write-up of England’s beach volleyball duo Chris Gregory and Jake Sheaf and the adversity they’ve overcome even just to make the Games, plus Kate O’Halloran’s terrific feature on how these Games have strived for LGBTI inclusivity.
Coming Up
Here’s what’s still to come on day eight. Remember, all times are local – the Gold Coast is GMT +10:00 and EST +14:00.
Our first gold of the morning has gone to England in the women’s cross-country mountain bike, and right now (very now) their male counterparts are taking to the course over in Nerang.
Rhythmic gymnastics is underway from 2pm local, and Chris Gregory and Jake Sheaf (see above) will be fighting for bronze in the men’s beach volleyball from 3.30pm, with the gold-medal clash between Australia and Canada starting around 4.30pm.
There are netball and hockey classification games to resolve with table tennis getting to the pointy end as well, before a flurry of gold is up for grabs in the men’s and women’s wrestling.
So plenty going on, and as always we’ll cover everything most of what you need to know here! So, chuck the kettle on, pre-heat your cup and reach for the organic rooibos.
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