Golden start leads to bronzed Aussies

It was a golden day for NSWIS canoe sprinter Murray Stewart, who triumphed as part of the Australian men’s K4 1000m crew at Eton Dorney.

In one of the first races on day 13, Stewart and the crew powered out of the start gate to gain an immediate lead over their competitors, but by the halfway mark their lead had been cut to only 0.09 seconds by Hungary. However, with 250m to go, and Olympic gold on the line, the quartet increased the gap to over half a second before becoming the first Australian crew to win Olympic gold in the event.

It wasn’t long after that NSWIS athletes Holly Lincoln-Smith, Alicia McCormack and Nicola Zagame added to the NSWIS medal tally, winning bronze in the women’s water polo competition. The team was in control for much of the match until Hungary scored a goal in the final seconds to send the match into overtime, locked at 11-11. Another tight tussle ensued in overtime, however Australia scored two goals and locked down their Hungarian opponents to win bronze, 13-11.

The two medals take the NSWIS medal tally to three gold, four silver and four bronze medals.

Day 13 of competition also saw Melissa Wu’s diving campaign come to a close with a fourth place finish in the women’s 10m platform; the Australian men’s 4x400m relay, featuring NSWIS athletes Steven Solomon and John Steffensen, eliminated in the heats, and the Australian men’s hockey team suffer a narrow 2-4 loss to Germany in the semi-final.

In Weymouth, NSWIS sailors Malcolm Page, Olivia Price, Nina Curtis and Lucinda Whitty were all scheduled to compete in their regattas, however light winds saw the day’s racing rescheduled. Page is aiming for his second consecutive Olympic gold in the men’s 470, while Price, Curtis and Whitty compete in the semi-finals of the women’s match racing.

Page is the only NSWIS athlete in contention for a medal on day 14, however there is still plenty of competition to come, most notably Matthew Mitcham, who begins his Olympic title defence on day 14.