GOLD IN RELAY FOR EMOTIONAL WADE

The 17-year-old Belgrave Harrier was a disappointing fourth in the 100metres but made amends by anchoring the England quartet to gold in the sprint relay at the Australian town of Bendigo.

Wade had suffered a rollercoaster ride of emotions in the course of the day after meeting Alina for the first time while he was warming up for the heats of the 100m. His father Gary now lives in Australia and it was the first time he had watched Wade race.

Wade explained: "I was warming up for the 100m heats when I heard this little voice shout my name. I saw my dad next to a little girl and knew it was my little sister. I think maybe that was why I didn't run too well in the 100m, because I was too happy. I knew in the relay I needed to be more aggressive."

The Belgrave Harrier has struggled with a recent quad injury and nerve problem in his leg and had to settle for fourth in the 100m, clocking 10.94sec into a stiff headwind. His personal best is 10.45. Australia's Brandan Galic won the gold medal in 10.76.

However, Wade retained his composure in the 4x100m to win a gold medal for England in 40.90 alongside Bernard Yeboah, Julian Thomas and Harry Aikines-Aryeetey.

"In the 100m final I had nothing left from about 40m out and I was disappointed not to get the gold," added Wade. "But it was good to get a medal in the relay, especially running the anchor leg."

Wade then set about finding out much more about his sister and of the experience he added: "It was strange meeting her for the first time because it was a new person, but I felt very comfortable around her."

His coach, John Powell, said of Wade's performance: "He has not trained for two weeks because of the injuries. In fact, he has not been able to run flat out training since the summer."

Wade's mother, Dorinda, met and married Wade's father in London but the couple later separated.

Wade now lives in Tarring with his mother while Gary lives in Melbourne.