Swimming: Baker's world record caps England's night
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Your support makes all the difference.Zoe Baker led a magnificent evening for the English women here by breaking the women's 50 metres breaststroke world record at the Aquatics Centre in Manchester last night.
The Chesterfield-born swimmer had already set a Commonwealth Games best in the heats in the morning. But she surged into today's final with an amazing swim, hammering Northern Ireland's Emma Robinson to come home in 30.57 seconds, almost a quarter of a second under the previous world best.
Baker revealed how she was confident before the race of putting on a show. "Today in the pool I thought I could do something special and I did," she said. "I coach myself now so I do all the things that I want to do. I know my body better than anybody else. I don't care about records tomorrow, I've done what I needed to do. That's one goal out of the way. I'll have to go for the gold tomorrow."
Baker will be joined in the final by her team-mate Kate Heywood, but the biggest threat to her gold medal hopes will probably come from Australia's Leisel Jones, the winner of the opening semi-final.
England's Karen Pickering had given the home supporters a perfect start by holding off a determined finish from her team-mate Karen Legg to land gold in the 200m freestyle.
The Ipswich veteran was trailing Legg at the halfway stage but surged past on the third length, then held on after the final turn to grab the 11th and most satisfying medal of her Commonwealth career, plus a Games record.
"I'd been feeling really good before the race but I didn't expect to go that fast," a tearful Pickering said. "I'm so overwhelmed."
Petria Thomas had led the Australian challenge after 50 metres but, after being overtaken by the English pair, she almost succumbed to the late charge of her team-mate Elka Graham. But the pair finished in the same time and were both awarded a bronze.
James Hickman's bid to win gold in home water ended in disappointment. The Manchester swimmer had to settle for bronze in the 200m butterfly, paying the price for a start which had him well clear at the halfway stage.
Hickman could not hold off the fast finish of the Australian Justin Norris, who grabbed gold in a Games record. He did not even have the consolation of leading the English challenge, being overtaken in the final few metres by Stephen Parry, who took silver.
There was a shock in the 200m women's individual medley when Zimbabwe's Kirsty Leigh Coventry emerged with a surprise gold medal from lane eight. She was using the medley as warm-up for her backstroke events and was just as stunned as the favoured three, an Australian and two Canadians, who thought they were fighting for the medals in the middle lanes.
"Was I expecting this? Not really," said Coventry, who is only 20. "I'm quite amazed. It hasn't really sunk in yet, and doesn't seem very real."
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