Forty-five reasons to say well done

By DAVID LEGGATT at the Games

The weather for the final day of the Commonwealth Games could not have been more fitting - moments of sun amid a lot of rain.

It rained over the closing ceremony as it had for much of the 10 days of competition.

But that could not dampen the spirit of a festival in which friendliness and good humour never flagged.

The sun had broken through earlier on an afternoon that saw the New Zealand team win five gold medals, four silver and two bronze to lift their total to 45, more than previous teams have won at a Games outside New Zealand.

These were New Zealand's third most successful Games since 1930, behind Auckland 1990, which produced a bumper 58 medals, and the Empire Games of 1950, also in Auckland, that brought 52 medals.

And if our haul pales beside that of the Australians, well, it depends how you count them. On medals won per head of population New Zealand finished one place ahead of the Aussies.

Weightlifting proved to be the richest vein of minerals this time. Nigel Avery collected two gold medals for the clean and jerk and the overall contest in 105kg and over. He and Olivia Baker both won silver, and Baker and Terry Hughes each won two bronze medals, although Hughes got his courtesy of an Indian lifter who failed a drugs test.

Should each weightlifting event award three gold medals? No, but don't blame the lifters for that.

There is talk of a change, perhaps in time for the Melbourne Games of 2006. These things take time.

The federation is also to look into the vexed issue of "soft" bronze medals.

Six sports at Manchester offered two bronze medals and of them, only boxing has a strong case for avoiding a playoff bout for third.

Judo, badminton, squash, table tennis and bowls all awarded the two losing semifinalists a bronze medal. New Zealand collected seven medals that way.

Davie Currie, New Zealand's chef de mission, would prefer playoffs.

He was fit to burst with pleasure yesterday at the team's success.

Only two sports failed to pick up a medal - wrestling and gymnastics.

The gymnasts finished fourth in the teams event. No medal, but their tears of delight were well deserved. It was a giant step from Kuala Lumpur four years ago.

If they miss out on support in the next 18 months as they work towards the Athens Olympics, they will have a right to be miffed.

There were disappointments. Shooting, with six medals, was below its usual mark. Medal success is a strange beast. Some competitors collected bronze and were disappointed. Others received bronze through the double award system.

The netballers got a silver, but were gutted at losing the gold to Australia.

Swimmer Toni Jeffs bumped half-a-second off her best time in the 50m freestyle, won a bronze and, at 33, is eyeing a trip to Athens in two years.

Table tennis player Laura Lee Smith won a bronze without playing a game in the teams event.

New Zealand's finest performer at the Games?

Perhaps the hockey men's 7-1 thrashing of Pakistan to make the final.

Perhaps, for different reasons, Susy Pryde, battered and bruised but with a silver medal around her neck for the mountainbike race.

Perhaps cyclist Greg Henderson's gold in the points race, when his team gave a superb demonstration of the art of working together.

But it would be hard to top table tennis player Li Chunli.

Aged 40, she won 24 of her 26 games, beat the world No 9 and No 16 players twice, and won gold for the singles, silver in the doubles and a brace of bronzes in the mixed doubles and the teams event.

Full coverage:
nzherald.co.nz/manchester2002

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