Swimmer Scott is Uni’s golden boy...
Stirling University swimmer Duncan Scott has been on the gold trail at the European Championships at the Tollcross pool in Glasgow this week.
The 21 year-old from Alloa, whose phenomenal performance on the Gold Coast earlier this year saw him win six medals to become the most decorated Scottish athlete at a single Commonwealth Games, had already won gold in the men’s 4x200m freestyle relay with Calum Jarvis, Thomas Dean and James Guy and a silver in the 100m freestyle behind Italy’s Alessandro Miresi when he lined up in lane eight of the 200m final.
No-one gave him much chance after a poor semi-final but roared on by the home crowd, he stunned the rest of the finalists and commentator Andy Jamieson — who said he “stole”the gold — to win in 1.45.34.
He said afterwards:“I am absolutely delighted. I didn’t know what was going on and, at the last turn, I sort of realised where I was and tried to hang on.
“I just had to go out there with no expectations and swim my own race out there in lane eight.
“I had a lot of things to correct between the semis and the final and I’m glad I managed to do it.”
Fellow university swimmer Ross Murdoch missed out on a medal by one-hundredth of a second in the 200m breaststroke final. It was a bitter pill to swallow for Ross who had also missed out on a semi-final slot in the 100m despite winning his heat in the third fastest time and fourth fastest in the world this year.
Only two swimmers from any one country are allowed to race in the swimming finals and world record holder Adam Peaty and James Wilby were quicker, Wilby by 0.02secs.
Ross also missed out in the 50m breaststroke, going out at the semi-final stage and another Stirling Universitybased swimmer reaching the semis was Kathleen Dawson in both the 50m and 100m backstroke.
Colleagues Craig McLean won 4x200m freestyle mixed relay bronze with Stephen Milne, Kathryn Greenslade and Freya Anderson while Aimee Willmott was fourth in the 400m indivudual medley final and seventh in 200IM final.
Triathlete Marc Austin — who trains at the Airthrey campus — goes for gold in the men’s event today (Friday) and the mixed relay tomorrow (Saturday) at Strathclyde Park and on the golf course at Gleneagles, graduate Catriona Matthew and her partner Holly Clyburn are one win away from the semi-finals after two victories.