Aussie Davies mows down Kenyan for 10,000m gold

Shayne Hope | July 28, 2026

Rose Davies was “running scared” but need not have been as she blitzed the field to create history as the first Australian woman to win Commonwealth Games gold in the 10,000m.

In the absence of Scottish icon Eilish McColgan, who didn’t overcome a toe injury in time to defend her title in Glasgow, Davies mowed down runaway leader Diana Wanza after the Kenyan had opened up a huge lead with six laps remaining.

Davies gradually reeled in her rival and surged to the front with two laps to go, pulling clear to win a tactical race in 31 minutes 39.32 seconds.

It was the 26-year-old’s first Games medal and despite an eventual winning margin of more than 10 seconds, she didn’t sense gold was secure until the final few strides.

“I was running scared. Anything can happen and I had no idea where the girls were,” Davies said.

“I was trying to look at the big screen, but I was just going as hard as I could in the last hundred metres. Once I crossed the line I was very happy.

“I could tell (Wanza) was slowing, but I wasn’t sure how much of a gap I had and I knew the race for third, they were coming too.

“They could’ve finished really fast so I was just still trying to run my race and run as fast as I could and finish really strong.”

Wanza claimed silver and Rwanda’s Florence Niyonkuru took bronze, narrowly ahead of Uganda’s Esther Chebet.

Wanza and Niyonkuru were first and second in the African championships this year.

Davies, who battled hip injuries early in her career, had to run a patient race and it paid huge dividends.

“(Wanza) did make a pretty hard move with six laps to go and I knew it was a long way out,” Davies said.

“I thought if I stayed relatively close I’d be able to close the gap, and that’s what I did.”

An ecstatic Davies, who will also contest the 5000m in Glasgow, was unaware until after the race that she was the first Australian to win the event.

“That’s crazy. I’m so happy. I didn’t know that, I just found that out then, so that’s really cool,” she said.

Australia’s Lauren Ryan was in the mix for bronze, but had to settle for fifth.

“I feel like I ran a really smart race and didn’t make any silly moves … but obviously watching a medal slip away is heartbreaking,” Ryan said.

“I’m pretty devastated and I think my family’s pretty devastated.”

Earlier, Australia’s Sarah Billings moved into the women’s 800m semi-finals with a comfortable win in her heat, stopping the clock at 2:01.51 to qualify second-fastest behind Kenya’s Lilian Odira (2:01.05).

Billings has been in career-best form, setting a new Oceania record (1:57.01) in Paris a month ago.

“It felt good,” the 28-year-old told AAP.

“I’ve approached the champs as any other race, just like a Diamond League, trying not to build it up too much in my mind and just take it each round at a time.

“Now that the heat’s done, it’s a weight lifted up and I’m looking forward to the semis, but a semi in an 800 is never easy.”

Australian para athlete Ullrich Muller won silver in the men’s 100m T38 behind England’s Thomas Young.