By Steve Keating
BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuters) – Australia’s Oliver Hoare used a devastating late kick to claim a surprise win in the Commonwealth Games men’s 1,500 metres on Saturday, as Scotland’s newly minted world champion Jake Wightman was denied a golden double.
After Wightman’s stunning victory at the worlds a little over two weeks ago in Eugene, Oregon, a capacity crowd packed into a sun-kissed Alexander Stadium with hopes of watching the Scotsman do it again.
But the roars were not enough to lift Wightman to the top of the podium as Hoare timed his move to perfection down the home stretch, coming from fourth to pip Kenya’s Timothy Cheruiyot at the line for gold.
Hoare finished in a Games record time of three minutes, 30.12 seconds with Cheruiyot just 0.09 seconds back to take silver and Wightman settling for bronze.
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Birmingham; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
