Australia off to a flyer as swim stars shine at Commonwealth Games

BIRMINGHAM, UK: Australia dominated the first night of action in the Commonwealth Games pool in Birmingham on Friday to race clear at the top of medals table.

Olympic champions Ariarne Titmus and Zac Stubblety-Cook showed their class in tight races while world champion Elijah Winnington powered home in style.

Australia finished their evening on cloud nine by winning the mixed 4x100m freestyle relay, with Emma McKeon collecting the ninth Commonwealth gold of her career.

They won eight medals out of a possible 16 on day one of sporting action at the Games — five clear of second-placed New Zealand.

Titmus, who won 200m and 400m freestyle gold at last year’s Tokyo Olympics, was given a mighty scare in the women’s 200m freestyle at the Sandwell Aquatics Center by 18-year-old compatriot Mollie O’Callaghan.

The double Olympic champion was in control for most of the race but was hunted down the final stretch, edging home by just 0.12sec in a new Games record of 1min 53.89sec.

“Moll has been killing in training, she is young, feisty, hungry — I knew she would be there,” Titmus told Australia’s Channel 7. “It is fun to have a race.”

“I love it that we are in a country where we have depth like this,” added the 21-year-old, who recently had a bout of coronavirus.

Winnington stormed to victory in the men’s 400m freestyle as Australia swept the podium just weeks after winning the world title in Budapest.

The 22-year-old, who was inside world record pace for much of the race, tired in the latter stages, clocking 3:43.06.

Winnington, who almost quit the sport after a poor Olympics last year, said he was not too disappointed that he had faded in the final stages to miss out on a shot at the world record.

“It’s something to