Hunter Bell backs Commonwealth Games decision
Georgia Hunter Bell insists it was always a ‘no-brainer’ to compete in the Commonwealth Games. This year’s Glasgow showpiece has been dominated by a string of high-profile athletics withdrawals, with Keely Hodgkinson, Dina Asher-Smith and Katarina Johnson-Thompson all absent in Scotland.
But Hunter Bell, 32, looked nothing else but committed in waltzing through her 800m heat on a speedy Scotstoun track. The world silver medallist cruised through in a time of 2:02.61 to book her place in Wednesday’s semi-finals.
Many athletes have cited a jam-packed schedule for their absence in Glasgow, with the first ever European Championships on British soil taking place in Birmingham next month. But Hunter Bell, making her Commonwealth debut here, says making a similar decision never entered her thought process. The Putney native said:
“Any opportunity to win a medal for Great Britain or England, I obviously want to do.
“I’ve never done the Commonwealth Games before, so it’s obviously my debut. For me, it was always going to be a no brainer that I do it. I always wanted to do it.
“I was happy to control the race and I felt really good – I’m happy and it’s job done. Taking home some hardware would be great, but then I’d also like to use this as a stimulus for training going into the 1500m again.”
Reekie safely through in front of home crowd
Scottish star Jemma Reekie finished second in Hunter Bell’s heat to also safely navigate her way to the semi-finals in front of her home crowd. The former world indoor silver medallist, 28, has endured a difficult couple of years and was in a race against time to make these Games after suffering a freak concussion in Poland.
But she looked in fluent form as she made her Scotstoun bow and is relishing the prospect of tougher things to come.
“It’s special to be here in Scotland wearing a Scotland vest,” she said. “I love having a challenge and building myself up towards those challenges – the semis are going to be really tough out there.
“But that’s my next thing – getting through that next round. I’ve not been to a final in a long time so I want to be back in that final.”
Hahn and Young add British gold medals
Sophie Hahn bounced back from a difficult couple of years to scorch to T38 100m glory and lead home a British one-two-three. The two-time Paralympic champion, 29, has struggled since Tokyo 2020 but claimed her first Commonwealth title since 2018 ahead of Wales’ Olivia Breen and English compatriot Maddie Down.
“The crowd really got behind me and I just felt that I had to focus. This is very special – it’s been a long time since I last won a Commonwealth Games back in 2018.
“This means a lot to come here in a home Games and to win.”
And there was also English success for Thomas Young later in the evening, who celebrated his 25th birthday in style with T38 100m gold. The Tokyo Paralympic champion stopped the clock in 11.11 to beat Australian Ullrich Muller and follow up his World Championship bronze in New Delhi.
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