Bell was happy with his start, which was an area he wanted to sharpen after yesterday's heat and semifinal. Photo / Getty Images
A different day and a markedly different reaction to a fourth place finish from a New Zealand swimmer in the Commonwealth Games pool in New Delhi last night.
Where Natalie Wiegersma was in tears after missing bronze in the 200m individual medley by a blink 24 hours earlier, backstroker Daniel
Bell was remarkably upbeat after his fourth place in the 50m backstroke final.
Bell touched in 25.27s, his second best time over the distance, in a race won by England's Liam Tancock out in lane seven in a Games record 24.62s.
Australian Hayden Stoeckel took the silver in 25.08.
Bell was bumped out of bronze by .06s by Australian Ashley Delaney, but it was not an occasion to drop his head.
"It's never nice finishing fourth but it's the fastest I've been all season and it's setting up good for the 100m [his favoured event] in a couple of days," Bell, from Hawkes Bay said.
"I'm getting faster as each swim goes so I guess I can't complain."
There's something engaging about Bell's openness.
He's had his disciplinary issues in the last couple of years but his attitude appears mature and he speaks in a straightforward manner.
Bell was happy with his start, which was an area he wanted to sharpen after yesterday's heat and semifinal.
He had no real sense of where he was down the length - "and in the 50m you never want to look around anyway. You just get there as fast as you can and hope it's good enough. It was close, but no cigar."
Bell's teammate, Wellington's Gareth Kean, alongside Bell in lane one, finished eighth in 25.89.
Kean was off the pace early as the middle lanes tore down the pooland could have been covered by a blanket.
Bell and Kean have their 200m backstroke heats tonight.
Other New Zealanders in heats action include Lauren Boyle in the 800m freestyle; Wiegersma in the 100m butterfly and the women's 4 x 200m freestyle relay team of Boyle, Natasha Hind, Ammaka Gessler and Melissa Ingram.
