Swimmers Tom Dean, Freya Anderson and Ed Mildred became the first University of Bath-based athletes to win medals at Birmingham 2022 as they helped Team England to mixed 4x100m freestyle relay silver on the opening day of the Commonwealth Games.
Dean and Anderson, of the British Swimming Performance Centre based at the Team Bath Sports Training Village, teamed up with fellow Olympic Champion Anna Hopkin – a University of Bath alumna – and Lewis Burras to finish runners-up to Australia in the final race of a busy evening at Sandwell Aquatics Centre.
Mildred, also coached by David McNulty in Bath, received a medal too after his impressive swim in the morning’s heats to help Team England secure their final berth.
Anderson, who had finished fourth in the 200m freestyle final earlier in the evening, praised the support from the home fans, saying: “The crowd was amazing tonight and I felt really proud. I loved the noise and loved having that bit of pressure.”
Hopkin agreed, saying: “The roar when we walked out was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before.”
There are more medal hopes on Saturday as Bill Whiteley Sporting Scholar Dean bids to add 200m freestyle Commonwealth gold to the Olympic title he famously won 12 months ago in Tokyo. Training partners Holly Hibbott, Jacob Peters and Brodie Williams will also be racing in finals on Saturday evening, as will University of Bath Swimming Club’s Ben Proud.
Friday also saw Team Bath Netball Superleague players Imogen Allison, Sophie Drakeford-Lewis, Layla Guscoth and Betsy Creak all make their Commonwealth Games debuts, while student-athlete Grace Crompton grabbed two tries as England’s women won one and lost one in the rugby 7s.
Visit teambath.com/Birmingham-2022 to stay up-to-date with how University of Bath-based athletes are faring at the Commonwealth Games.
With thanks to the Team Bath Press Office at Matchtight
