Commonwealth Games Day 1: Teenager Indi Cooper sets PB

3 August 2022

Commonwealth Games Day 1: Teenager Indi Cooper sets PB

The track and field program got underway overnight at the Commonwealth Games with five NSW athletes in action.

Tumut’s Indi Cooper, 16, destroyed her PB to progress from the T37/38 100m heats into the final. In the first round in the morning, she placed fourth in a time of 13.77, destroying her old best of 14.29. In the evening final, she backed this new level with a time of 13.88, again well under her previous best, as she placed eighth.

Illawong sprinter Rohan Browning rebounded from his heat result at the recent World Championships with a ripping 100m heat time of 10.10 as he took the win in heat 9. His time was the equal fourth fastest from the heats, but just 0.04 seconds from the leader. On the Gold Coast in 2018 he missed the final by less than 0.01 seconds, so he looks in form to improve on his last Commonwealth Games appearance when he races in the semi-final tomorrow morning AEST.

"I have struggled a bit on the circuit this year and the losses really started to pile up," Rohan told AAP’s John Salvado.

"But I knew I had a run like that in me. I just trust that the form is there; it's just in the execution. I think I've tapped into a good vein of form for these championships."

In the women’s T33/34 100m, two NSW athletes were in the top-6. Sarah Clifton-Bligh clocked 22.71 to place fifth in the straight final. As she was in the T33 classification, her performance was a Games Record. In sixth place was Rosemary Little with a season’s best time of 23.05.

Nick Hough progressed to his third consecutive Commonwealth Games 110m hurdles final, although it was a nervous wait after he placed fifth in his heat in 13.62. He eventually moved into the final as the second fastest non-automatic qualifier. After a rusty run in the heat, the field all start even for the final.

David Tarbotton for Athletics NSW

Image: Indi Cooper (courtesy of  @athleticsaustralia / @christo1966)