Galpin achieves 200m semi-final goal while Chadwick breaks his PB

GUERNSEY’S leading sprint duo made their mark – albeit in different ways – over 200m yesterday in Birmingham.

Guernsey's Abi Galpin (right) and Wales' Hannah Brier after heat three of the first round of the Women's 100 metres at Alexander Stadium on day seven of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Picture date: Thursday August 4, 2022. (Picture PA, 31112524)

Abi Galpin achieved her target of qualifying for this evening’s semi-finals, while Joe Chadwick continued his remarkable rebound from injury to become Guernsey’s second fastest sprinter ever for the distance.

Galpin appeared to make light work of her goal, becoming the island’s only automatic qualifier in the track and field events at this Commonwealth Games.

Guernsey’s fastest woman lined up in a depleted heat of just five athletes and needed a top-three placing to guarantee her progression.

Jamaica’s Natalliah Whyte eased to a convincing win, while Wales’ Hannah Brier – whose younger brother Joe is a rival and Great Britain teammate to Cam Chalmers over 400m – also held off the Sarnian, who finished a safe third in 24.47sec.

The 21-year-old described the feeling of reaching a semi as ‘really amazing’.

‘I wanted to get to the semi-final, and it’s a really, really tough field compared to normal years, so I’m really happy to have made it,’ she said.

Galpin may have benefited from luck of the draw – other four heats were won in faster times and several athletes had to settle for non-automatic qualifiers after going quicker than her.

She will face stiffer opposition in her semi, which takes place at 8.15pm tonight, but can she challenge her own Guernsey record of 23.82?

‘I’ll give it my best shot ... the bend wind was pretty rough just then, so yeah, we’ll try.

‘[The atmosphere], you can’t really explain it until you experience it yourself. It is crazy – it’s so good.’

Two days after becoming Guernsey’s fastest ever man over 100m, Chadwick could not quite repeat that in his 200m heat.

Joe Chadwick in-between Adam Gemili, left, and Jersey’s Zachary Saunders in the 200m. (Picture by PA, 31113549)

But, after months of injury struggles, he emerged with a 0.19sec. personal best of 21.54.

While that did not stand up to a winning run by famed Great Britain athlete Adam Gemili, who went one lane to his right, or even Jersey’s Zach Saunders on his immediate left, his sprint for sixth was a sterling performance in domestic terms.

The 20-year-old moved past Josh Allaway, Cam Chalmers and Dale Garland in Guernsey’s all-time list.

He now only has Tom Druce’s Island record of 21.32 to chase down.