Pearson takes hurdles gold

Sally Pearson puts the crushing disappointment of being stripped of her 100-metre gold medal behind her.

NEW DEHLI: Australian Sally Pearson put the crushing disappointment of being stripped of her 100-metre gold medal behind her to bounce back and win the 100-metre hurdles title as she crossed the line in a new Games record time of 12.67 seconds.

As Pearson brushes aside her miserable experience for the 100-metre, bad news piled up for the Nigerian Osayemi Oludamola who had been awarded the gold medal for the race instead. The Nigerian failed a dope test which a senior Games anti-doping official confirmed, but would not comment on whether she would be stripped of her medal.

India’s Krishna Poonia led an Indian clean sweep in the women’s discus final winning with a throw of 61.51 metres. Poonia gave the hosts their first athletics gold medal in 52 years.

Canada’s Alexandre Despatie won the three-metre springboard diving title, his eighth Commonwealth Games gold medal since his first appearance in 1998, making him the first Canadian to win seven golds at the Games.

African champion Richard Mateelong led a Kenyan clean sweep in the men’s 3,000-metre steeplechase, crossing the line in 8:16.40, while Australia’s Olympic and world champion Steve Hooker cleared 5.60 metres to easily win the pole vault gold medal.

Australia through to hockey semis

Captain Madonna Blyth scored the winner in the 38th minute as defending champions Australia downed a fighting England 1-0 to make it to the women’s hockey final. The Aussies, ranked number six to England’s five, will meet New Zealand in the final, who defeated South Africa 1-0.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 12^th, 2010.