Australia has won four gold medals on day five of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
Cate Campbell led an Australian clean sweep in the women’s 100m freestyle, with her sister Bronte second and Emma McKeon third.
It was the second Australian clean sweep in the pool overnight, with Brett Larkin beating compatriots Josh Beaver and Matson Lawson in the men’s 200m backstroke.
Australia’s other two gold medals came in shooting – Warren Potent took out the 50m rifle prone competition and Laetisha Scanlan won the women’s trap.
Australia so far has 30 gold medals in total, three ahead of England.
Sister act
At 186cm, world champion swimmer Cate Campbell casts a long shadow. But she believes her younger sister Bronte finally stepped out of it after a blistering 100m finish at the Commonwealth Games on Monday night.
Bronte Campbell clocked a personal-best 52.86 seconds in a scorching 100m freestyle final – a time that would have claimed London Olympic gold.
Yet she was again relegated to bridesmaid honours by sister Cate, who equalled the world’s fastest time of 2014 – 52.68 seconds – to claim the gold.
Emma McKeon (53.61) completed Australia’s 100m sweep.
But instead of lapping up the limelight, Cate Campbell opted to share it with a long-suffering sister she believed had earned it.
“Coming through the ranks it was never ‘there’s Bronte Campbell’ – it was ‘there’s Cate Campbell’s sister’ and I really felt for her,” she said.
“So for her to step out of the shadow and be her own person is an incredible achievement and something I am fiercely proud of her for doing because it couldn’t have been easy.”
The Campbells became the first sisters to finish one-two in any Commonwealth Games race.
Swimming record books also showed it was the first time two swimmers from any nation clocked under 53 seconds in the same race.
But Cate Campbell believed her sister had achieved so much more.
“I hope she values our friendship and relationship enough not to hold a grudge against me,” Cate said of yet another win over her sibling.
“I hope if the tables are ever turned I am as considerate and generous and loving as she is, because it must be tough.
“I am so grateful to have her by my side in the pool – because she brings out the best in me – and outside.”
Bronte Campbell reportedly has a list of every person who has beaten her in the pool – and her sister tops it.
Her goal was to cross everyone off after beating them.
But Bronte didn’t sound like she had her sister in her sights.
“I don’t want to strike Cate off any list. She’s my sister,” she said.
“I don’t make a goal of beating her. I make it a goal to get a win for myself.
“Coming second to Cate is a win; a good time is a win for me. I just love racing.”
The Campbells featured in the world-record-breaking 4x100m freestyle relay team while Cate collected 50m silver and Bronte 50m bronze at Glasgow.
“I couldn’t be more thrilled with how this meet has gone,” Bronte said.
Backstrokers’ sweep
Australia’s male backstrokers ended a 40-year drought in style as Mitch Larkin led a clean sweep of medals in the Commonwealth Games 200m final.
Larkin collected his first major international gold medal to become the first Australian to win the event since Brad Cooper at the 1974 Games in Christchurch.
The 21-year-old Queenslander clocked one minute 55.83 seconds as compatriots Josh Beaver (1:56.19) and Matson Lawson (1:56.63) took silver and bronze respectively in Glasgow on Monday night.
“It’s pretty unreal and to share this moment with two other Aussies is fantastic,” said Larkin, who collected his third medal of the meet, after silver in the 50m and 100m finals.
“All three of us are good 200 backstrokers and I knew if we all swam well it (the trifecta) would be a chance.
“We all know how hard each other works so getting first, second, third is incredible.”
Beaver, 21, achieved his seventh PB from eight swims in Glasgow while 22-year-old training partner Lawson collected his first international medal.
The trio now hope to spur each other along in a bid to catch the American and Japanese swimmers who have dominated the event in recent times.
“All we have to do is race in Australia and you’re racing against the best in the Commonwealth,” Larkin said.
“Backstroke in Australia is certainly developing quite quickly and you can’t afford to get left behind.
“Hopefully next year or the year after we can bridge that gap and then one day hopefully surpass the Japanese or the Americans.”
The Australians will get to test themselves against the world’s best at next month’s Pan Pacs on the Gold Coast.
Gymnasts on track
Australia’s women gymnasts are right in the thick of the battle for Commonwealth Games gold going into day two of the artistic teams event in Glasgow.
Flawless routines on the uneven bars by Georgia-Rose Brown and Larrissa Miller propelled the Aussies into second place behind England following two of the four apparatus in the teams event at a packed Hydro on Monday night.
England lead the way on 85.390 with Australia hot on their tail on 83.882, with the beam and floor routines on Tuesday to complete the tussle for gold.
Brown backed up her 14.083 on the uneven bars – which was the third-highest score on the apparatus – with a 14.133 to lead the individual all-around qualifying at the halfway point.
Miller went one better on bars, a 14.433 the second-highest score for the day, securing her a berth alongside Brown in the uneven bars final later in the week.
“Oh my god I’m so excited, I’m still so hyped up,” Miller said.
“I’ve trained day in and day out for that moment. I’m so happy with how I went.
“We’ve got a fairly strong team on both floor and beam – we’re going to try and catch England. It would be awesome.”
Coach Peggy Liddick was understandably delighted, but was preaching calm with another big day coming up as the Australians look to defend their teams title from Delhi four years ago.
“It’s halfway, we’ve got to keep remembering that,” Liddick told AAP.
“We can enjoy it for five minutes; we’ve got a big job to do on beam and floor tomorrow.”
Liddick couldn’t help but single out 22-year-old Miller for some special praise.
“That was beautiful. That’s not even her best, that’s a watered-down routine,” she said.
“We’ve got big plans for her.”
Shooters’ double gold
Australia has had its best day in shooting competitions at the Games, picking up two gold medals and a bronze.
Laetisha Scanlan and Warren Potent both claimed gold for Australia at the satellite shooting venue at Carnoustie.
Daniel Repacholi added a bronze in the men’s 50m pistol to the 10m air pistol gold he won earlier in the week, marking Australia’s best day on the range during the Games.
Sprint king
Kemar Bailey-Cole has retained men’s sprint bragging rights for Jamaica with victory in the men’s 100m final at the Commonwealth Games.
In the absence of world record holder Usain Bolt, who is contesting only the four-by-100m relay in Glasgow, his training partner Bailey-Cole won in 10.00 seconds.
England’s Adam Gemili took silver in 10.10 and Nickel Ashmeade from Jamaica took the bronze in 10.12.
Earlier, Blessing Okagbare from Nigeria became only the second African sprinter to win the Commonwealth Games women’s 100m title.
She clocked a Games record time of 10.85 seconds, relegating Jamaican duo Veronica Campbell-Brown and Kerron Stewart to the minor medals.
