• Commonwealth Games

Bolt sees Jamaica through as Daley claims silver

ESPN staff
August 1, 2014
Usain Bolt was worried as he took the baton for the final stretch in Jamaica's men's 4x100 metres heat © Getty Images
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Jamaica are through to the final of the men's 4x100 metres relay but they had to rely on Usain Bolt to see them over the line at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

After a showman's entrance at Hampden Park, eight-time Olympic champion Bolt stormed clear in the final leg of the race to pip Nigeria to top spot with a time of 36.84 seconds. Nigeria are also through.

"I looked round and thought something was wrong. I was kind of worried but Kimmari Roach got the baton round and that is sign of a true champion. My coach always taught us to run with pain," Bolt told BBC Radio 5Live.

"My week has been good and the people have been extra nice. I have been taking lots of pictures and heard I got some cops in trouble. I would never say that [the Games are rubbish]. When I come to the games, I always look forward to it."

Bolt and Co will be joined by England, who put an impressive performance in their heat to finish ahead of South Africa with a time of 38.78 seconds.

England will also contest the final of the women's 4x100m relay, although a baton controversy threatened to cut short their campaign. Ashleigh Nelson struggled to take the baton from Louise Bloor ahead of the last straight but it was eventually deemed a good switch. Jamaica stole the show as World and Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce thundered across the line ahead of Nelson to win the heat.

Wales, however, have been disqualified despite recording a national record time which would have seen them through to Saturday's final. Mica Moore and Hannah Thomas could not handover legally and the nation is now out.

Lynsey Sharp won a brilliant silver for Scotland in the women's 800m © Getty Images
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In the diving, Tom Daley and James Denny secured a silver medal in the men's 10m synchronised platform final despite having only trained three times together. Australia's Domonic Bedggood and Matthew Mitcham secured gold by 0.18 of a mark, with the English duo ensuring silver with a superb last dive.

Daley told the BBC: "We didn't know what to expect. We only started training for the first time last Friday and have only had three sessions, so I am really happy with the way it went. For the last dive I said give it everything because anything can happen. We managed to do it and James did a great job.

"Considering we went to nearly 400 points with just one good dive I think we will go into the European Championships and enter the synchronised. With a bit more training under our belts we could go quite far."

The most rousing reception of the night came when home favourite Lynsey Sharp burst down the final straight to clinch silver in the women's 800m final. World champion Eunice Sum broke well clear in the closing 100m for the Commonwealth title, while England's Jess Rudd finished fourth.

Sharp said: "This is my everything. The last year has been obstacle after obstacle, even right up to this morning being in hospital in the athletes' village until 5.30. I hadn't slept for 12 hours and was throwing up all night and had a drip in my arm.

"But there was no way after going through everything I have been through I was not going to get a medal today.

Moses Kipsiro defended his Commonwealth crown in the men's 10,000m, edging Kenya's Josphat Bett and Canada's Cameron Levins in a thrilling finish to the line. However, he almost didn't run.

"I've been having a lot of injuries so my knee was very painful," Ugandan Kipsiro told BBC Sport. "I said I wasn't going to take part but something deep inside said 'you can make it'. I stuck to it and now I'm really happy."

During their laps, the 10,000m runners almost collided with Steve Lewis, who was running across the track to celebrate with his family after becoming the first English man to claim a Commonwealth gold medal in the men's pole vault. Fellow Brit Luke Cutts, a Yorkshireman, had to settle for silver on Yorkshire Day.

Isobel Pooley is a Commonwealth silver medallist in the women's high jump, after she finished behind 18-year-old Australian Eleanor Patterson.

Jonathan Ndiku of Kenya took gold in the men's 3000m steeplechase, with England's James Wilkinson finishing fifth while fellow Brit Jade Lally finished with a bronze medal in the women's discus. The 2009 world champion Dani Samuels won the gold.

Elsewhere, England boxer Scott Fitzgerald is into the men's welterweight final and will fight India's Mandeep Jangra for the gold.

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