Hammer thrower Jennifer Joyce wins Canada’s first medal in track and field at Commonwealth Games
Monday, March 20, 2006
MELBOURNE - Jennifer Joyce of Richmond, B.C., won Canada’s first medal in track and field at the Commonwealth Games on Monday with a silver in the women’s hammer throw.
Australian Brooke Krueger won the gold with a Games-record throw of 67.90 metres. Joyce was second at 67.29 metres, with England's Lorraine Shaw third at 66.00 metres.
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Joyce, 25, an assistant coach at the University of California at Berkeley, was seventh at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, and didn't compete at the 2004 Athens Olympics, narrowly missing the Canadian qualifying standard.
‘’I was hoping to win the gold medal here but it’s still nice to get the silver,’’ said Joyce with her first major international medal. ‘’For me it’s the start of the season and it’s very encouraging to know I’m only going to get better as the year goes on.’’ |
Joyce recoded her best throw on the second of six attempts and it was briefly a Games record. She fouled out on her first and third attempts and threw 64.93 on her fourth, 65.94 on her fifth and 65.83 on her sixth. Krueger overtook Joyce for the lead on her fourth attempt.
Canada also had a finalist in both the men’s and women’s 100 metre dash.
In the women’s 100, Sheri-Ann Brooks of Jamaica ran a personal best to win the gold medal in 11.19 seconds. Geraldine Pillay of South Africa was second in 11.31 and Delphine Atangana of Cameroon third in 11.39.
Erica Broomfield of Scarborough, Ont., a 200-metre specialist, won her semifinal heat then placed sixth in the final in 11.49 seconds.
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‘’I was happy to make the final but the race didn’t go as well as I had hoped,’’ said Broomfield, competing at her first major Games. ‘’I hope to remedy that in the 200. I had a very good start but my transition phase in the race didn’t go so well. I have to stay more composed during the race.’’ |
In the men’s 100, world record holder Asafa Powell posted a convincing win clocking 10.03 with Soji Fasuba of Nigeria second in 10.11 and Marc Burns of Trinidad and Tobago third in 10.17. Anson Henry of Pickering, Ont., was seventh in 10.28.
‘’After yesterday’s rounds I expected a bit more today,’’ said Henry, who’ll now prepare for the 4X100 relay later this week. ‘’My legs weren’t there. I wasn’t getting out the blocks and accelerating as well. I couldn’t get to the top end speed smoothly.’’
In the men’s 5,000, Augustine Choge set a Games record 12:56.41 for the gold leading Kenya to three of the top four placings. Reid Coolsaet of Guelph, Ont., was 13th in 14:05.32.
In men’s high jump qualifying, Mark Boswell of Brampton, Ont., the defending champion, was first as he needed to only execute one jump after clearing 2.15 metres on his first attempt. South Africa's Ramsay Carelse also cleared 2.15 metres to win the other group but started his competition at 2.10 metres.
In the first round in the women’s 1,500, all three Canadian entries advanced to Tuesday’s final. Carmen Douma-Hussar of Cambridge, Ont., was second in her heat in 4:09.98 while in another heat Hilary Stellingwerff of Guelph was third in 4:11.75 and Malindi Elmore of Calgary fifth in 4:12.51.
Also in action on Tuesday are Jessica Zelinka of Calgary in the women’s heptathlon, Chantal Petitleclerc of Montreal, Diane Roy of Sherbrooke, Que., and Tracey Ferguson of Toronto in the women’s 800-metre wheelchair race; Jason Tunks of London, Ont., and Dariusz Slowik of Kamloops, B.C., in the men’s discus; Jared MacLeod of Winnipeg and Charles Allen of Brampton in the men’s 110 hurdles; and Tara Quinn-Smith of Waterdown, Ont., in the women’s 10,000.
Athletics Canada is the national sport governing body for the sport of track and field including cross-country running and road running.
-AC-
Mathieu Gentès
Marketing and Communications Manager /
Gérant de marketing et communication
300-2197 Riverside Drive, Ottawa, ON K1H 7X3
Tel (613) 260-5580 ext. 3303 / Fax (613) 260-0341
mgentes@athletics.ca
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