The Barbados contingent could be leaving the 21st Commonwealth Games in Australia empty-handed after Shane Brathwaite finished sixth in the sprint hurdles yesterday.
Running in lane 2 of the final, the 28-year-old Brathwaite clocked 13.53 seconds and finished near the back of the field in a race dominated by Jamaicans Ronald Levy and Hansle Parchment.
Levy took the gold medal in a time of 13.19 seconds, with Parchment, the Olympic gold medallist, crossing the line second in 13.22 seconds. Australia’s Nicholas Hough collected the bronze with a time of 13.38 secs.
Brathwaite won bronze at the 2014 Games in Scotland, Barbados’ only medal.
Tia Adana Belle’s first appearance of the Games was her last as she finished at the back of the field in the opening round of the women’s 400 hurdles. The 21-year-old clocked 56.55 seconds and was the seventh and last of the finishers. That heat was won by Eilidh Doyle of Scotland in 54.80 seconds.
It was a tough day for Barbados, with the netball team slipping to their third defeat in four matches after losing 49-39 in an enthralling clash with Northern Ireland that was close and compelling.
The Irish led 12-11 at the end of the first quarter but Barbados bounced back, outscoring their opponents 13-8 in the second quarter.
By the close of the third period, the Irish had nosed ahead 30-29 before pulling away in the final quarter for a ten-goal victory.
Barbados’ 21-year-old goal shoot Shonica Wharton shot at 93 per cent, scoring 27 of her 29 tries, while Latonia Blackman made good nine of 12 and Nikita Payne scored all three of her attempts.
Barbados committed 25 turnovers in the Pool A clash at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre.
The Bajan Gems will clash with powerful South Africa today.
The most riveting match of the day was the showdown between Malawi and Scotland in Pool B. Malawi won 51-50.
In shooting, Louis Estwick was never in contention in the 50-metre rifle prone qualification, while Richard Arthur and Jason Wood failed to make the top ten of the Queen’s Prize Pairs finals.
It was a mixed day for Barbados on the table tennis boards. Mark Dowell lost both his singles matches but there were wins from Kristian Doughty and 18-year-old Tyrese Knight.
Knight lost 4-3 to the Ghanaian Bernard Sam before bouncing back to topple Nigel Bryan of Guyana 14-12, 11-6, 11-7, 4-11, 11-6. Doughty defeated Brian Ndunda of Kenya 11-9, 12-10, 11-13, 12-10, 2-11 and 12-10.
On Monday, boxer Jabali Breedy lost his opening bout in the 52 Kg round of 16 to Brendan Irvine of Northern Ireland. Irvine was a comprehensive 5-0 winner on points. (MK)
