Georgia Davies sets games record in 50m backstroke heats

  • Wales
Georgia Davies already has a silver under her belt from this years' Games. Credit: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

Georgia Davies set a new Commonwealth Games record on her way to qualifying for tonight's semi finals of the 50 metres backstroke heats in Glasgow.

The 23-year-old, who won silver in the 100m final, came home in 27.90 seconds ahead of Emily Seebohm of Australia.

Davies is now looking to improve on the 50m bronze she won in Delhi four years ago and feels the likes of Jazz Carlin can take Team Wales to their six-medal target by following herself, Jack Thomas and Calum Jarvis onto the podium.

There was more Welsh promise in the women's 200m butterfly heats with 2010 bronze medallist Jemma Lowe the second fastest qualifier and team-mate Alys Thomas also making tonight's final.

Scotland's Hannah Miley, who is going for a third Glasgow 2014 medal, booked her place along with England's Aimee Willmott.

And Welsh 18-year-old Daniel Jervis won his 1500m freestyle heat ahead of Mack Horton of Australia and England's Daniel Fogg, although another teenager, Stephen Milne of Scotland, went faster in the final heat to push Olympic silver medallist Ryan Cochrane all the way.

Jervis, who set a personal best of 15:06.60, said:

Jervis set a new personal record in qualifying for the 1500m freestyle final. Credit: Andrew Milligan/PA

Milne took more than 12 seconds off his personal best to finish nine hundredths of a second behind Cochrane in 15:03.38.

There was earlier Scottish success when Ryan Bennett and Craig McNally opened the penultimate day of swimming at Glasgow 2014 by finishing one-two in their heat to reach the final of the 200m backstroke.

But Australia are well placed to dominate the final, with 100m medallists Mitch Larkin and Josh Beaver among the fastest four. Welshman Xavier Mohammed scraped into the final.

England's Ben Proud split the strong Australian team in the 50m freestyle heats to post the third fastest time in qualifying for tonight's semi-finals. Proud's team-mates, Adam Brown and James Disney-May, also qualified for the last 16 along with Scotland's Richard Schafers and Curtis Coulter of Northern Ireland.

England's Ollie Hynd finished five seconds ahead of the field in the para-sport 200m individual medley heats. The Paralympic champion, who has a degenerative muscle condition, races the same four rivals in tonight's final.