A year out Mitchell wants relay medal

Olympic sprinter Morgan Mitchell is thrilled that the 2018 Commonwealth Games are being held in Australia on the Gold Coast and she has high hopes for her team in the 4x400m relay.

The 22-year-old spoke with the media and participated in a public event at Federation Square celebrating one year to go before the Games officially starts.

“I guess today is pretty special, we just came off the back of Rio,” Mitchell explained.

“It’s a home Commonwealth Games, to me it’s just exciting really.

“We get to come together, my family gets to come and watch, yeah it’s going to be amazing.”

Commonwealth Games athletes were front and centre at the event that saw crowds of kids have a go at shooting netball goals alongside the sports stars who signed autographs and spoke to the media on stage.

Other athletes in attendance included recently retired champion cyclist and Games ambassador Anna Meares who was joined by a host of star netballers, triathletes and a badminton player.

Mitchell has already confirmed her spot on the Australian team for the upcoming world championships in London after she won her third national title in Sydney on the weekend.

“I cannot explain how much preparation goes into it,” she said.

“We have world champs, Olympic Games and then Commonwealth Games – it’s just a never-ending cycle, so I’ve got world champs this year in London.

“Then I’ll have two weeks off to then prepare for the Commonwealth Games.

“It’s pretty much a 24/7 gig, especially when it’s at home, you don’t want to screw up.

“So yeah, I’ll definitely be on the ball.”

The women’s 4x400m relay team that featured Mitchell in the Rio Olympics competed impressively to make the final last year, and a similar performance on the Gold Coast could see them win a medal.

“My expectations are to keep producing PBs I guess, because anything can happen,” Mitchell said.

“For me, (it’s to) PB, a medal is obviously great.

“We definitely want to medal in the relay, we know we can do it with home track advantage.

“That’s the one thing, I’d be very disappointed if we didn’t – but individually it’s just to run fast and see what happens.”

London Olympic champion hurdler and 2018 Commonwealth Games ambassador Sally Pearson was at another live event on the Gold Coast while Olympic discus thrower Dani Stevens appeared in Sydney.

“I don’t think you’d want to miss out on this one,” Mitchell added.

“Ticket prices are cheap, the host city is amazing, come on down.”

The Official GC2018 Ticketing Guide, available online at www.gc2018.com/tickets, also explains the process for how to complete a ticket request.

Athletics competition schedule released

In celebration of the one-year-to-go milestone for Gold Coast 2018, the sport schedule for the 2018 Commonwealth Games has today been published by GOLDOC.

Athletics competition will commence on Sunday 8 April, opening with the men’s and women’s 20km walk at Currumbin Beachfront before an evening session in-stadium. It continues through Sunday 15 April, with Saturday 14 April hosting the final in-stadium session ahead of the men’s and women’s marathon to be held in the hours before the Closing Ceremony.

To view the competition schedule for athletics, please open the attached ‘Commonwealth Games Competition Schedule’ or click here.

2018 Commonwealth Games Nomination Trial & Policy

Athletics Australia will nominate an athletics team for selection by Commonwealth Games Australia at the conclusion of the Nomination Trial in 2018. The dates of the Nomination Trial are currently being finalised, as is the 2018 Commonwealth Games Nomination Policy, including qualification standards, which will be released shortly.

Athletics Australia today confirmed that the qualification period for in-stadium events at the 2018 Commonwealth Games has been confirmed as 1 January 2017 through until the conclusion of the Nomination Trial.