Shropshire swimmer Oliver Morgan wins Commonwealth Games silver medal

Ollie Morgan insists he belongs on the biggest stage after delivering his best of the season to snatch a maiden Commonwealth Games medal.

The Bishop’s Castle swimmer muscled his way to second place in the men’s 50m backstroke final, for his first major medal at a global championship.

The 23-year-old, who was an Olympic finalist two years ago, admits he has been struggling to find his best this year, despite completing a hat-trick of British titles in April.

But at a raucous Tollcross International Swimming Pool in Glasgow, he saved his best for his biggest race of the year to grab silver for Team England.

“I think it was a bit of relief, to be honest. Now I can just build confidence moving into the rest of the week," he said ahead of further races in the 100m.

“It's going to be a tough Games, so it was important to get that first race out of the way.

“I knew it would come at some point. I'd probably have liked it to come a bit earlier in the season, but that's just the way it goes.

“I had a few struggles around the trials, so it was just about getting back into training, improving and trusting the process.

“It wasn't about panicking - just keeping at it.”

Morgan, who trains at the University of Birmingham, burst onto the scene in 2023 and made his Olympic debut the following year, where he finished eighth in the 100m final.

He is one to watch ahead of the next Games in LA and, after a frustrating season, was thrilled to deliver when it mattered.

Morgan was beaten to the title by South Africa’s Pieter Coetze, who won in a new Games record time of 24.18 seconds.Morgan was 0.3 behind, and finished as the top Brit ahead of England teammates Jack Skerry (4th)) and Cameron Brooker (8th) and Scotland’s Matthew Ward (7th).

“I think it's all about experience. Racing in international finals has built my confidence and I feel like I belong on that stage now,” he said.

“These days it's more excitement than nerves. The nerves are always there, which is a good thing because it shows you care.

“We do this day in, day out, so it's important to be able to perform in those environments - and I love it.

“It's a quick splash and dash. But I actually had a lot of technical cues to focus on and things I wanted to improve through the rounds.“I think it's given me good confidence heading into the rest of the week.”

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