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NZ soars on medal table after golden night

Author
NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Tue, 10 Apr 2018, 8:15AM
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NZ soars on medal table after golden night

Author
NZ Herald,
Publish Date
Tue, 10 Apr 2018, 8:15AM

Shot bro! Walsh strikes shot put gold

This wasn't vintage Tom Walsh – far from it. And given his high standards he is unlikely to be entirely satisfied with a best throw of 21.41m. His reaction following his final throw did not reflect jubilation.

But creating New Zealand athletics history, as the first Kiwi male to claim gold in the Commonwealth Games shot put, is no understated achievement.

After silver in Glasgow four years ago, Walsh's upgrade adds to his crowded mantelpiece that already features world outdoor and indoor titles. His status remains such that he will be favoured to continue his collection and claim Olympic glory, the holy grail, in Tokyo, 2020.

Earlier, a world record mark wasn't enough for Holly Robinson to clinch gold in the women's F45 javelin.

The Hokitika 23-year-old threw a world record 43.32m, only for Welsh rival Hollie Arnold to trump it in her last attempt with 44.43m.

Weightlifting's first medal worth the wait

New Zealand's reputation at the Commonwealth Games weightlifting fell to David Liti in the 105kg+ category. He offered nothing short of outrageous courage and brilliant theatre to secure gold.

His first snatch saw him put 166kg on the bar – 1kg more than his own mass. He lifted it like lint off a jersey.

He duelled with Pakistan's Muhammad Nooh Dastgir Butt and Samoa's Lui Lauititi as they ratcheted up the plates and swapped the lead among themselves.

Lui sat in the gold medal position, but not before he passed out on stage with his final lift. After medical staff had removed his groggy form via wheelchair, Liti was faced with a Commonwealth record 229kg from his final attempt.

His composure remain resolute and he posted the bar up to triumph with a combined weight of 403kg.

Butt lifted last, but could not make any in-roads.

Liti exited the champion.

Read more: Liti claims Commonwealth Games gold with brilliant showing

Gold for King, silver for Coll

All hail the King.

Joelle King become New Zealand's first squash singles gold medalist at the Commonwealth Games, taking down England's Sarah-Jane Perry in a brilliant final.

It was a tense 16-14 11-8 6-11, 11-13, 11-8 victory for King, who battled for 72 minutes on court before finally triumphing.

Any hope of double gold for New Zealand was culled short, with Paul Coll losing the men's singles final, swept aside 11-9, 11-4, 11-6 by Englishman James Willstrop.

Read more: Joelle King wins thrilling squash gold

Pascoe does the double

Make it lucky number 13 for Sophie Pascoe.

New Zealand's most successful swimmer added another gold medal to her already bountiful haul at the Commonwealth Games tonight, coming home first in the women's SB9 100 metre breaststroke final.

It added to her gold in the SM10 200 metre individual medley on Saturday, and brought her overall tally of gold medals in Paralympic and Commonwealth Games to 13.

This one wasn't as easy to earn as some others. Pascoe led all the way, but faded in the final metres, and came under threat from the Australian duo of Paige Leonhardt and Madeleine Scott.

However – as she always does – Pascoe came out on top, touching .72 seconds ahead of Leonhardt to back up her 2014 victory in the same format, in a time of 1.18.09.

Read more: Lucky gold medal #13 for Sophie Pascoe at Commonwealth Games

Rugby Australia's big hit

The financial cost of Australian rugby's horror 2017 has become clearer, with Rugby Australia posting a $7.5 million reversal.

RA's annual report cites the messy axing of the Western Force amid the Super Rugby restructure and disappointing tickets sales for Wallabies Tests as major factors in the downturn.

RA recorded a surplus of $17.8 million following a $3.7 million surplus in 2016 but the year also included $21.6 million in government funding for the new RA headquarters in Sydney. Without that one-off injection, RA recorded an operational deficit of $3.8 million.

Ferrari mechanic hit by Raikkonen says he's OK after surgery

The Ferrari mechanic who was hospitalized with a broken leg after being struck by Kimi Raikkonen's car says he is "OK" following surgery.

On Instagram, Francesco Cigarini wrote "Surgery ok. I have to thank all the people worried for me."

Cigarini included a photo of himself on a hospitable bed giving the thumbs up with his left leg covered in a cast from his thigh down to his toes.

The post was liked by Raikkonen.

Silver Ferns bounce back

The Silver Ferns secured a much-needed 60-29 Commonwealth Games win over Scotland.

Their campaign took a serious hit after the humiliating loss to Malawi 24 hours earlier.

That clearly invigorated the New Zealand players, notably the defenders.

There was a fire in their eyes and they clearly seemed out to prove they are still in the Games.

The Silver Ferns will now face England in their final match of the preliminary rounds.

Should they lose to England, the Ferns could still progress to the semifinals as the second-highest ranked team in their pool. However it would hurt their chances of chasing gold, and even getting a podium finish might be beyond them.

The game against England is at 11am tomorrow.

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