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Star of the show Teen Thorpe lives up to top Commonwealth Games billingPosted: Monday August 05, 2002 10:10 AMMANCHESTER (Reuters) -- Manchester 2002 will be remembered as Ian Thorpe's Games. The Australian swimmer's feats in the pool dominated the 11 days of competition and further enhanced his reputation as one of the best sportsmen in the world. The 19-year-old won six gold medals in Manchester to match Susan O'Neill and Graham Smith's record for the most golds at a single Commonwealth Games, as well as equaling O'Neill's career aggregate record of 10. He won four golds at the 1998 Games. Thorpe set the Games alight when he lowered his own world record to win the 400 meters freestyle and also won the 100 and 200 titles, the first swimmer to complete the treble. He also featured in the Australian men's three relay victories. His only defeat came in the 100 backstroke when he finished second to compatriot Matt Welsh, the world champion. "It's been a fantastic Games, not only for Australia, but for all teams," Thorpe said. "It's been a very successful Games for me personally, as well as everybody else." The only man who came close to challenging Thorpe as the leading performer of the Games was Caribbean sprinter Kim Collins, whose unexpected win in the 100 meters final thrust the islands of St Kitts and Nevis on to the world's sporting map. The final was billed as a showdown between two English rivals -- Mark Lewis-Francis and Dwain Chambers -- but both Englishmen pulled up in the second half of the race with injuries, allowing Collins to steal the show in 9.98 seconds. If the drama of the race was not enough, Collins was back in the spotlight a few days later when it was revealed that he had tested positive for a banned substance. But he was allowed to keep his medal because he proved he took the drug to treat asthma. Medal tally Australia confirmed their position as the Commonwealth's top sporting nation by topping the medal count with a total of 206, including 82 golds, a record haul for any nation at the Games. England, now with the backing of national lottery funds, finished second overall with 54 golds in a total of 165, ahead of India, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa. Nowhere was Australia's domination felt more than at the Aquatic Centre where the national anthem was heard 27 times. Petria Thomas became the first female swimmer to win the same event at three consecutive Games when she retained her 100 butterfly title on the way to five golds. Compatriots Welsh, Justin Norris, Geoff Huegill, Grant Hackett, Leisel Jones and Jodie Henry all collected three each. But not everything went Australia's way in the water as England, under the guidance of former Australian head coach Bill Sweetenham, showed how far they had come in a short time, winning 10 golds, double their haul from the 1998 Games. World records England's Zoe Baker joined Thorpe as the only swimmers to set a world record when she broke the 50 breaststroke mark. The only other world record set at the Commonwealth Games was in cycling where the Australian 4,000 meters pursuit team stopped the clock at three minutes 59.583 seconds. England reigned supreme in track and field, topping the medal count with 12 golds. English triple jumper Jonathan Edwards completed the "grand slam" when he added the Commonwealth title to his Olympic, world and European wins and Paula Radcliffe finally claimed her first title on the track with brave front-running in the 5,000. England's finest moment came in the men's 4x100 relay when Manchester-born Darren Campbell anchored the team to gold in a photo-finish from Jamaica. Debbie Ferguson of Bahamas was the queen of the track, winning three sprint golds, while Namibian Frankie Fredericks become the oldest person to win a track title in the 72-year history of the Games, taking the 200 at the age of 34. Emotional return Australia's Olympic champion Cathy Freeman made an emotional return to the winner's podium in her first appearance since Sydney when she picked up a gold in the women's 4x400, two months after her husband was diagnosed with throat cancer. India were the biggest surprise, boosting their hopes of staging the 2010 event with easily their best performance. After a total of 50 golds at all their previous Games' appearances, they collected 32 in Manchester alone. Most of their golds came in shooting and weightlifting. But the success was spoiled on the penultimate day when Indian weightlifter Krishnan Madasamy became the first competitor to be stripped of medals for failing a drugs test. He lost three silvers. Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. |
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