Australia announce Rugby 7s for Commonwealth Games

The Australian Sevens team to take part in the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi has been named after a selection camp held in Canberra.

This will be the fourth time Rugby 7s has featured at the Commonwealth Games. Australia have been drawn along side arch rivals England, Namibia and Sri Lanka in Pool D for the 2 day tournament which takes place on October 11 and 12.

The squad have been put through their paces under the eye of coach Michael O’Connor, who had a selection headache in naming a final squad of 12 players. The squad has been hit with a raft of selection drama’s with no less than 9 players unavailable through injury and an unfortunate situation for new Waratahs back Brackin Karauria-Henry, who has been forced to withdraw due to eligibility issues despite already playing for Australia on the IRB circuit this year.

Key players including Henry Vanderglas, Ed Quirk, Jacob Taylor, Clint Sills and even back up Ed Stubbs have all been ruled out with injury leaving O’Connor to call in extra players including Nick Cummins, Lachie Turner and Pat McCabe, who was only called up to the camp last week after only 8 fit players were available for selection.

The squad will now head to Darwin for 10 days to prepare for India by competing in a Sevens tournament. It is fair to say the conditions in Darwin will be more beneficial after atrocious conditions in Canberra last week.

2010 Australian Commonwealth Games Rugby Sevens team:
Liam Gill (18, QLD)
Kimami Sitauti (19, QLD)
James Stannard (27, ACT)
Pat McCabe (22, NSW)
Bernard Foley (20, NSW)
Luke Morahan (20, QLD)
Nick Phipps (21, NSW)
Robbie Coleman (20, NSW)
Pat McCutcheon (23, NSW)
Nick Cummins (22, WA)
Brian Sefanaia (24, NSW)
Lachie Turner (23, NSW)

Australian boxing squad for Commonwealth Games

Australian has named 10 men strong boxing squad for Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.

19 yr old Moloney brothers, Andrew and Jason, are set to become the first boxing twins to represent Australia at the Commonwealth level when they take the ring in the October 3 to 14 event.

While Andrew competes in the light fly weight 49kg division, Jason will be fighting it out in the fly weight 52kg
category.

They join cricketers Mark and Steve Waugh (1998) and cyclists Remo and Salsonetti (1978) as only the third pair of twins to represent Australia at the Commonwealth Games.

The Moloneys are among five teenagers who will make their debuts in Delhi, the Australian Commonwealth Games Association said. 2006 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Luke Jackson will be the most experienced member of the Australian boxing contingent. The oldest member is Russian born super heavyweight pugilist Alexey Mukhin (29).

The squad has Andrew Moloney (light flyweight), Jason Moloney (flyweight), Ibrahim Balla (bantamweight), Luke Jackson (lightweight), Luke Woods (light welterweight), Cameron Hammond (welterweight), Damien Hooper (middleweight), Dane Mulivai (light heavyweight), Giancarlo Squillace (heavyweight), Alexey Mukhin (super heavyweight).

Australia announce diving team for Common Wealth Games

Australia announced a 12 member diving team bound for 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. The team led by Olympic gold medalist Matthew Mitcham is set to prove its dominance in the medal tally at Delhi games.

Mitcham’s performance in the Commonwealth Games diving trials held in Perth earlier this week qualified him for four events, despite him confessing injury concerns about his heavy workload.

He will compete in the 1m springboard, 10m platform, 3m springboard synchro and 10m platform synchro events at the Commonwealth Games in October.

(Commonwealth Games diving events and schedule)

"I was very happy with my form throughout these trials," Mitcham said.

"I was a bit nervous going into the trials but finished strongly yesterday in my favourite 10m platform event and I’m very happy to be in the team."

Mitcham shot to prominence with his breakout performance at the 2008 Beijing Olympics when his last dive gave him a near-perfect score to win gold and has since been competing in gruelling international competition as he targets a similar result at the 2012 London Olympics.

Mitcham will be joined by 11 other divers, including reigning Commonwealth Games champions Sharleen Stratton and Briony Cole who will be chasing back-to-back gold medals in the 3m springboard synchro event in Delhi.

Alexandra Croak was added to the squad despite pulling out from the trials with a back injury and will have to undergo a fitness test to see if she can compete.

Croak, who has the unique distinction of being the only Australian to medal in two different sports at the Commonwealth Games – gymnastics and diving – will join Beijing Olympic silver medalist Melissa Wu in the 10m platform synchro event.

Victorian James O’Connor, 15, is the youngest member of the team and will make his Commonwealth Games debut with Anabelle Smith (VIC), Olivia Wright (NSW), Jaele Patrick (VIC), Ethan Warren (QLD) and Grant Nel (VIC).

Diving Australia High Performance Manager Graeme Rose said it was expected the current Australian diving team would continue the tradition of winning high number of medals at Commonwealth Games.

"Australia will face tough opposition from Canada, England and Malaysia, however this team is one of our strongest teams to represent Australia at Commonwealth Games," he said.

"The team is a nice blend of experience and youth and we’re expecting to do quite well."

Austrlia announce Commonwealth Games bowls squad

Australia on Wednesday announced its lawn bowls squad for the Oct 3-14 Commonwealth Games here.

Australia had topped the medal count in lawn bowls in Melbourne four years ago with three gold, one silver and one bronze medals and coach Rex Johnston believes it is possible to replicate that performance in Delhi.

'We're extremely happy with the final 12 that have been selected,' he said, preparing for his sixth successive Commonwealth Games campaign as a player or a coach.

'We have a strong mix of youth and experience, with the likes of Armitage, Turley and Casey being given the chance to defend their respective gold medals from Melbourne, while we've also invested our faith in the likes of Cottrell and Selby who have proven to be world class players over the past couple of years.'

Natasha van Eldik , 19, will be youngest lawn bowler to don the Australian colours in a Commonwealth Games meet.

She lines up alongside reigning gold medallist, 26-year-old Lynsey Armitage. The pair won the silver medal at the eight-nation tournament at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium lawn bowls facility here in April.

The 20-year-old Kelsey Cottrell, a reserve four years ago, will make her debut in the women's singles, while Sharyn Renshaw (NSW), Claire Duke (NSW) and Julie Keegan (NSW) have been selected to play in the triples.

In the men's disciplines, world No.2 Leif Selby has secured the coveted singles role while Mark Berghofer and Aron Sherriff will play in the pairs and Brett Wilkie will partner defending Games champions Wayne Turley (NSW) and Mark Casey (QLD) in the triples.

Team:
Men Singles: Leif Selby
Men Pairs: Mark Berghofer and Aron Sherriff
Men Triples: Brett Wilkie, Wayne Turley and Mark Casey.
Women Singles: Kelsey Cottrell
Women Pairs: Lynsey Armitage and Natasha Van Eldik
Women Triples: Sharyn Renshaw, Claire Duke and Julie Keegan

5 athletes added to Australian Commonwealth Games squad

Emerging race walker Jess Rothwell and four marathon runners are the latest additions to Australia's track and field squad for the Delhi Commonwealth Games in October.

Rothwell, a former world junior championships representative, gained the final berth up for grabs in the event.

The 20-year-old forced her way into the squad by finishing ninth earlier this month at the World Race Walking Cup in Mexico despite just returning from injury.

She joins Claire Tallent and Cheryl Webb in the women's 20km race in Delhi.

Marathon runners Lisa Flint, Martin Dent, Jeff Hunt and Michael Shelley were also added to the squad, joining automatic selection Lisa Weightman.

Dent is the only one with previous Commonwealth Games experience, having contested the 3000m steeplechase four years ago in Melbourne.

The squad now stands at 74 athletes, with Athletics Australia hoping to take a team of 90 athletes to India for the Games.