Eilidh Child cleared another huge athletics barrier by advancing to her second Commonwealth Games 400m hurdles final then warned that she might need to beat her lifetime’s best, and run under 54 seconds for the first time, if she is to add to Team Scotland’s haul of gold.
Home favourite Child gave the 44,000-strong sell-out Hampden crowd a morning to remember by winning her heat in 55.56 secs, the second fastest of the round after Kalise Spencer of Jamaica’s 55.45.
The most experienced member of Scotland’s 58-strong athletics squad, Child ignored the distraction of a false start and the disqualification of Trinidad and Tobago’s Josanne Lucas to forge into the lead from the gun.
She kept her stride pattern to 15 until the top bend, before shortening it to 16 as she tired, changing her lead leg from left to right, before storming down the home straight to a huge Hampden Roar.
It was a determined and, under the circumstances, brave demonstration of front-running and hurdling and allowed the Pitreavie AC athlete to cross the line a street ahead of Canada’s Chanice Chase.
“I have been dying to get out there, put in a solid performance and blow the cobwebs away,” said Child.
“I was quite nervous, but just wanted to get a feel for things. I quizzed Laura (Muir) about what it was like, and she just told me to go out and get the race out of the way, no panics and nothing to worry about.”
Delhi silver medallist Child, 27, now advances directly to Thursday’s final after organisers were alerted to the fact that the smaller than expected number of athletes confirmed for the women’s event negated the need for today’s planned semi-finals, forcing a programme change.
“Yes, my race has changed about four times since the first timetable,” said Child.
“I was told there would be semis, but there won’t be now. Today’s round was originally timed to start at 12.50, then 12.15, then it was delayed but you can’t control these things. You just deal with them.
“But to be fair, three races wouldn’t have been too bad for me, as I usually do three at the worlds and Europeans. But it’s nice to know I now have a day off tomorrow. I can go back and chill out.”
She believes the final will be close but hopes the Hampden crowd can propel her to the podium.
“I think the crowd can give me that extra kick, especially when I’m dying up the home straight,” she said.
“That’s when you have all the other athletes around you and mistakes can happen.”
She also expects to have to slice off more than a second from Tuesday’s 55.56 to medal.
“Yes, Kalise has done a 53.3 this year, which is a second faster than my PB. If I want to do something I will have to beat my PB (54.22). I am pretty confident that I will have to run under 54 anyway.”
Despite the nation’s expectations, the Glasgow 2014 poster girl said she had tried to take the games in her stride.
“The team have been joking that they are sick of seeing my face everywhere but it’s quite nice. People are always going to put expectations on me, but at the end of the day I can only go out and do what I do.
“I do try to look calm, but I don’t know that I am on the inside. I normally don’t get involved with the crowd at the start of an event. I’m usually concentrating and trying to focus on my own race.
“But there was such a big cheer today that I had to say thanks for it. It was really cool actually.”
And finally, she wanted to give a big thank you for the giant good luck message done by children at Perth Grammar School, where she used to teach.
“I saw the message in the stadium and it was brilliant,” So thank you for that.”
One of the biggest names in world athletics graced Hampden’s morning session and faced one of Scotland’s most exciting prospects.
Kenyan David Rudisha, who upstaged even Usain Bolt at London 2012 with his stunning gun-to-tape 1:40.91 world record in the men’s 800m, didn’t show any obvious signs of nerves on lining up with Scotland’s national champion Guy Learmonth drawn on his inside.
The fact that an almighty six seconds separated the two athletes on paper didn’t stop the 22-year-old from Lasswade loving every minute of his morning duel with the great champion.
And Rudisha, who has already run 1 min 42 this season, spoke warmly of his reception in Scotland.
“Wow, it’s really fantastic. I’m very happy the way they are responding and cheering,” he said.
“The stadium was almost full, and it was really good when I was out there. The track feels nice and fast, too.”
Rudisha looked effortless in his heat, winning in 1:46.89, with Learmonth going through to the semi-finals as a fastest loser in 1:47 85.
Virtually unknown before London, the Kenyan remains the most likely athlete to break 100 seconds for two laps.
Meanwhile London 2014 gold medallist Greg Rutherford advanced to tonight’s long jump final.
The English star, whose great-great uncle took part in a Scotland-England game at Hampden, qualified with a leap of 8.05m, well down from the world leading 8.51 he set in America in April.
In the Para-Sport women’s 1500m T54, a wheelchair race, Scotland’s Samantha Kinghorn finished third in her heat to qualify automatically for tonight’s final, but Tullibody’s Meggan Dawson-Farrell finished fourth and had a nervous wait before being confirmed as a finalist.
“I may have gone a bit too soon,” said a relieved Dawson-Farrell.
“I wanted to see what I could give. Then they came round me and kicked and kind of left me. But I’m happy I made it to the end in one piece.”
Six time Paralympic gold medallist and six times London Marathon winner David Weir (England) had no such trouble, destroying the field in his heat to advance to the men’s 1500m T54 final.