A jubilant Cypriot athletic team flew home from their best ever Commonwealth Games performance yesterday, after coming 12th out of 43 in New Delhi.
Their 11-medal haul - four gold, three silver and five bronze - has exceeded many observers’ expectations, including Cyprus’ Commonwealth team leader Dinos Michaelides, who was hoping to bring back six medals.
Rhythmic Gymnast Chrystalleni Trikomiti won Cyprus’ first gold medal of the games and eventually took home two golds, one silver and two bronze medals.
On her arrival last night she said: “I feel very proud for my country.”
Dimitris Krasias won a third gold medal in Artistic Gymnastics Men Horizontal Bar. The fourth gold medal came from the skeet team George Achilleos and Andreas Chasikos.
Two more silver medals were awarded to Marianna Zachariades in women`s pole vault and George Achilleos in skeet shooting.
Bronze medals, apart from the two won by Trikomiti, were awarded to Herodotos Giorgallas in the gymnastics for Men's Rings and Andreas Chasikos in the men's singles skeet.
The team could have fared even better were it not for sprinter Eleni Artymata’s controversial disqualification from women's 200m final.
Artymata was a favourite for the gold until she allegedly strayed into another runner’s lane, who later appealed. Race officials disqualified her despite not noticing any infringement at the time and their equipment failing to detect any problem with her race.
Cyprus came in ahead of Northern Ireland and behind New Zealand. Australia, India and England took first, second and third place.