Swimming: Thorpe's gold rush off to a flying start

Ian Thorpe, Australia's 19-year-old superstar swimmer, made the most emphatic entrance possible on to the 2002 Commonwealth Games stage last night by breaking his own 400-metres freestyle world record to take gold in his first final of a likely magnificent seven.

At 7.42pm, to rapturous acclaim from a capacity crowd containing no small amount of Antipodean support, he won with a time of 3min 40.08sec to finish ahead of his compatriot Grant Hackett, 3:43.48, and Scotland's Graeme Smith, 3:49.40. The winning time clipped 0.09sec from the previous record, which Thorpe set last year in Japan, where the locals marvelled at the feat almost as much as the size-17 shoes.

You know what they say about men with such huge feet. Huge socks. And Thorpe will need a couple of big ones in which to squirrel all his gold when his career ends. After the 400m last night, his fifth Commonwealth title following four as a 15-year-old in Kuala Lumpur in 1998, he won a second of the night and sixth in total. Australia took the men's 4x100m freestyle final in 3:16.42 ahead of South Africa, 3:18.86, and Canada, 3:19.39, Thorpe anchoring the victory.

The successes left the teenager with a mere five golden hurdles to clear, in two more individual freestyle events, the 100m backstroke and two more relays.

Last night's 400m was a typically captivating performance, from the moment Thorpe sat down on his chair and smiled, almost bashfully, to the final length of the eight. At that point he kicked on ever-so-slightly stronger, pulling smoothly clear of Hackett towards the touch pad. Apparent slow motion, actual high velocity.

"I'm pretty happy," Thorpe said. "I came here relaxed and the crowd and the atmosphere they generated made it easier. Once again I came close to 3:40 ­ that's the next target to keep me motivated."

Thorpe's stated aim is to continue swimming to the 2008 Olympic Games in China. Not literally, of course, although his prowess would probably allow it, in record time. By then, if everything goes to plan, he will be able to say, as he fervently desires, that he is greatest freestyler in history.

He first swam into the international spotlight in 1998 by winning golds in the world championships and Commonwealth Games. Three golds and two silvers at the Sydney Olympics were followed by six gold medals at last year's world championships. He has broken 18 world records in all.

"Aw mate, he's so big," said one female Australian photographer yesterday, canvassed about his stature, physically and metaphorically. "Big hands, big feet, big talent."

She stopped there, having made her point. No matter how impressive he looks on a television set, it isn't until you stand next to him, 6ft 5in in his freakish natural flippers ­ which come from his mother, it was reported this week ­ just how imposing he is.

"He's a legend already, definitely," said another Aussie, in town for the Games. "It isn't just the Sydney Olympics or his medals or his records but the way he's become so good across so many events. And he's such a lovely, sensible person. Like the guy next door who's done well."

If ever there were a platform to compare sporting boys next door, it is these Games. In the 400m heats yesterday morning, Thorpe clocked 3:47.24 to ease through in first place. At the other end of the spectrum Nigeria's Kpiliboh Otiko, who turns 15 in December, took almost as long to do the first 300m. The Games' youngest male swimmer, who has been competing for just a year and practises in a river, eventually finished in 4:54.15.

The next worse time came from Colin Bensadon of Gibraltar, who clocked 4:27.73 but he seemed to kick only with his left foot. The challenge for Thorpe's rivals is that if he kicked with only one foot, he would still be in front.

Much like Tiger Woods, Michael Schumacher and Ronaldo, Thorpedo is setting standards that few, if any, of his contemporaries can match. Quite how these colossi have been gifted so profoundly is up there with life's other great mysteries.

Not that Australia, or the capacity crowd here last night, or anyone who delights in the sublime pushing of boundaries by athletes at the very pinnacle of their game, will be troubled by that this week.