Olympic champion Daniel Wiffen faced disappointment as he missed out on a medal in the men's 400m freestyle final at the Commonwealth Games on October 7, 2026, finishing fifth at the Tollcross Swimming Centre with a time of 3:47.22.

Wiffen, who previously secured Olympic gold in the 800m freestyle and bronze in the 1500m at the Paris 2024 Games, advanced to the final after placing third in his heat. Despite a promising start, he struggled in the final stretch, fading in the last 50 meters.

Reflecting on the race, he stated:

"We always knew Sam Short, the race winner, would be really good in this. He almost broke the world record a few weeks ago. In my eyes, it was a race to come second, and I've never experienced a pool that wavy."

Wiffen's teammate, Jack McMillan, also had a tough outing, finishing seventh in a time of 3:49.18.

Looking ahead, Wiffen remains optimistic about his chances in the upcoming men's 800m heats at 20:37 BST on October 9, where he will again face Short. He expressed confidence:

"It's going to be a good race, and I'm going to be ready for it."

In other events, Lottie Cullen advanced to the women's 100m backstroke final with a time of 1:00.82, while teammates Danielle Hill and Grace Davison missed out. Matthew Hamilton set a new Irish junior record in the men's 100m butterfly but did not qualify for the semi-finals, finishing fifth in his heat with a time of 52.62. Lastly, Ellie McCartney finished fourth in the women's 100m breaststroke semi-final with a time of 1:08.63, missing the final.