Barbados' Desean Boyce advances to Commonwealth Games 400m semi-finals

Barbados: Sprinter Desean Boyce qualified for the semi-final round in the 400 meters men's race at the 23rd Commonwealth Games after he finished second in his opening heat on Tuesday with a time of 46.55 seconds. The semi-final round will be held on Thursday, July 30.

Fellow Barbadian Kyle Gale also competed in the event but did not advance to the next round. He crossed the finish line in 47.41 seconds. Also, the race ended for Kuron Griffith in the semifinals of the men’s 100m event. He clocked 10.26 seconds in the race and finished eighth.

In the women’s 100 metres, Kishawna Niles ran a season's best time of 11.44 seconds and finished third in the race, but was also unable to qualify for the final round.

Barbados swimmers also faced early departures on Tuesday. Jaiya Simmons was not able to advance in the women’s 200m individual medley event, while Victor Ashby and Christen Kelly did not qualify in the men's 50m butterfly. Toria Alleyne also missed a place in the next round for women’s 50m freestyle heat event.

In other events on Tuesday, Cameroon’s Emmanuel Eseme earned the first gold medal in the men’s 100 metres, while the gold medal in the women’s 100 metres went to Zoe Hobbs of New Zealand.

In the medal tally, Australia continued to lead the Commonwealth Games with a total of 80 medals (35 gold, 18 silver, 27 bronze), with England in second place with 43 medals (10 gold, 18 silver, 15 bronze), and Canada in third with 35 medals (13 gold, 10 silver, 12 bronze).

The 23rd Commonwealth Games will be hosted in Glasgow, Scotland from July 23 to August 2, 2026. Overall, there will be participation of 74 countries in 215 events across 10 sports.