Emmanuel Eseme
Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme powered to a Commonwealth Games record of 9.83 in the pouring rain to win the 100m in Glasgow on Tuesday (28).
The 32-year-old was one of three Games record-breakers during the first two days of competition at Scotstoun Stadium, Canada’s Camryn Rogers and Ethan Katzberg also making history in the hammer. Rogers threw 74.91m to win the women’s competition on Tuesday, while Katzberg managed 80.97m to win the men’s on Monday (27).
But it was Eseme who secured the spotlight on the wet track as the African champion overpowered Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy and Nigeria’s Kayinsola Ajayi in the closing stages to win the 100m in a national record of 9.83 (1.3m/s) – a performance that puts him third on the African all-time list and also makes him the third-fastest sprinter so far this season.
Kennedy broke the Oceanian record with 9.85 for silver as the top four all dipped under 10 seconds – Ajayi clinching bronze in 9.90 and South Africa’s Gift Leotlela finishing just 0.01 back for fourth place. Eseme had earlier won his semifinal in a national record of 9.89 (0.0m/s), while Ajayi and Kennedy clocked 9.94, a PB for Kennedy.
New Zealand’s Zoe Hobbs was another Oceanian record-breaker as she won her 100m title in 10.93 (1.0m/s) to lead a sub-11 seconds top three ahead of England’s Amy Hunt (10.98) and Australia’s Torrie Lewis (10.99).
Olympic and world hammer champion Rogers improved the Games record with her final throw in wet conditions as she launched the implement 74.91m to better her own previous record of 74.68m from Birmingham four years ago.
That completed a Canadian hammer double as her fellow Olympic and world champion Katzberg threw 80.97m to improve on the Games record of 80.26m set by Nick Miller on the Gold Coast in 2018. All four of Katzberg’s valid throws surpassed 80 metres. World U20 champion Iosif Kesidis of Cyprus was second with 76.97m and Rowan Hamilton clinched another medal for Canada – bronze with 75.36m.
The Games record was equalled in a women’s high jump contest that was paused due to the rain, 2022 world gold medallist Eleanor Patterson clearing 1.96m on her final attempt to lead an Australian top two ahead of world champion Nicola Olyslagers (1.93m).
There was an Australian double in the 10,000m, Rose Davies winning a tactical women’s race in 31:39.32 on Monday and Ky Robinson taking the men’s title in 27:48.93 on Tuesday. Kenya’s Diana Wanza was second in the women’s race in 31:50.13, while Florence Niyonkuru battled for bronze, becoming Rwanda’s first ever Commonwealth Games medallist. Silver in the men’s race went to India’s Gulveer Singh (27:49.78) and bronze to Isle of Man’s David Mullarkey (27:50.28).
Kenya’s world U20 champion Edmund Serem clocked 8:18.23 to lead a Kenyan medal sweep in the 3000m steeplechase ahead of Simon Koech and Leonard Bett as world champion Geordie Beamish finished fourth.
Jamaica’s Demario Prince won the 110m hurdles in 13.17 (0.4m/s) ahead of Sam Bennett in a PB of 13.30. There was another title for Jamaica in the high jump as Romaine Beckford got gold on countback ahead of India’s Sarvesh Kushare after they both cleared 2.25m.
Northern Ireland’s Kate O’Connor led the heptathlon at the end of the first day with 3731 ahead of England’s Jade O’Dowda on 3682.
