England Look to Build on Golden Start
10th September 2011Following their terrific team triumphs today, England’s teenage gymnasts will lead the gold hunt again at the Commonwealth Youth Games on the Isle of Man tomorrow as the nation’s best young athletes chase medals in four of the Games’ seven sports with final places up for grabs in the other three.
Dominick Cunningham and Jay Thompson are well set for the men’s individual all around contest after qualifying first and second respectively from today’s team event, as did Rebecca Tunney and Abi Caig in the women’s. All four will now expect to be on the podium again tomorrow.
Similarly, time trial gold medallist Hannah Barnes and her cycling team-mates Lucy Garner and Harriet Owen will be full of confidence for the women’s road race with a finish in front of the island’s famous TT grandstand an added incentive.
Jon Dibben, Matthew Holmes and Sam Lowe are seeking more medals in the men’s event after Dibben took bronze and the team silver in today’s time trial.
Swimming champions Georgia Mae Hohmann and Matt Johnson are both back in the pool. Hohmann will be relishing another close tussle with her room-mate and fellow-medal winner Phoebe Lenderyou in the women’s 100m backstroke after they finished one-two in the 200m version today.
Johnson, meanwhile, follows his 400m IM victory with a shot at the 1500m free, while 100m free bronze medal winner Sophie Smith returns for the 200m IM. Rachael Kelly will be hoping to get among the medals in the 200m butterfly after she just missed out in the 50m.
On the track, 400m star Clovis Asong bids to add the Commonwealth Youth title to the European Youth Olympic crown he won earlier this year. The Manchester athlete cruised through his heat and semi-final today, clocking 48.05, the quickest time of the day. George Caddick was third fastest qualifier and will also have eyes on a medal.
Former English Schools champion Jazmin Sawyers has her eyes on a medal in the women’s long jump, while James McMurray and Robbie Farnham-Rose have big hopes in the men’s 1500m where they’ll face the strong Kenyan duo of Jonathan Kiplimo Sawe and Vincent Kiprotich Mutai who won their heats by a long margin.
All seven of England’s boxers have semi-final bouts and with no bronze medal matches they are guaranteed medals. But it’ll be places in Sunday’s finals on the minds of light heavyweight Jack Massey and his team-mates.
Massey had a tough battle against Sumit Sangwan from India in his quarter-final today but came through 15-13.
Rhys Walker, Tom Wolfenden and Emily Westwood will contest singles quarter-finals in the badminton tournament with semis to come later in the day. All three face tough opposition, especially Wolfenden who faces Welsh number three seed Daniel Font.
Walker plays Eddie Hung of Australia with a match against the new Malaysian wonderkid Zulfadli Zulkiffli an enticing prospect in the semi-final.
Westwood will also join partner Tom McCarthy in the mixed doubles quarters, but there was disappointment for number two seeds Walker and Holly Smith who couldn’t get beyond the last 16.
Smith and Sophie Brown play in the women’s doubles quarter-finals while Wolfenden and McCarthy have a difficult men’s doubles match against Malaysia.
Finally, the rugby 7s tournament gets underway in the King George V Bowl Stadium with England’s talented squad full of confidence ahead of three group B matches against Trinidad & Tobago, Sri Lanka and the powerful South Africans, which will determine their place in the quarter-final draw.