British triathlon moves from strength to strength

Triathlon has become a pillar of the British Olympic calendar. With the Brownlee brothers storming to the top of the podium in the past few Olympic games, it has given the sport a huge platform to be enjoyed by any Team GB supporter.

Bu, with no Alistair Brownlee this year, all eyes fell to Johnny and new-bees Alex Yee and Jess Learmonth, as well as the current world Champion Georgia Taylor-Brown and former Olympic medallists Vicky Holland, to pull out all the stops. 

The men’s triathlon got off to something of an unusual start. Yes, we have all seen a false start before, but never one which involved around a third of athletes being blocked from entering the water by a large boat. Both athletes and spectators alike were baffled by the technical blunder as it led to a less than perfect start in the already challenging conditions. 

However, once the race started the event took another gruelling turn. With temperatures of up to 27°c and almost unbearable humidity, the race became challenging not only within the usual realms of mental stamina, but also by challenging the athletes’ physical capabilities in such conditions. 

Having seen Johnny Brownlee being pushed over the line by his brother after suffering with heat stroke five years ago, these conditions added another tactical challenge for Brownlee to overcome. In the end, Jonny didn’t get the ‘fairy-tale ending’ he had been hoping for in his last Olympics as he was unable to stay with the lead group who broke away during the final run, giving him a fifth-place finish. 

Yee, on the other hand, was able to handle the pacing and led for much of the final section of the race. Being one of the fastest runners in the field this was surely a sign of a gold medal coming his way. However, Blumenfeld of Norway was able to put in a sterling final push, which even the powerhouse of Yee was not able to keep up with under the conditions. However, a silver medal in his debut Olympics was a wonderful achievement from the self-acclaimed “normal guy from south-east London”. 

The theme of silver medals and top five performances continued into the women’s triathlon, as well as the slightly unfortunate conditions. It seems that luck was not on the side of Team GB this games.

Only 12 weeks prior to the games Taylor-Brown was on crutches, and while the heat rocketed for the men, the rain fell by the bucket load during the women’s triathlon and led to a heart wrenching puncture for Taylor-Brown. 

There is a unique almost family like bond between Britain’s triathletes that is something special

Having sat in a comfortable position alongside her teammate Jess Learmonth throughout the swim and majority of the bike, Taylor-Brown’s puncture meant that she fell off the back of the leading pack with 2k to go, costing her 22 seconds heading into the final leg. 

Describing that she ‘“just rode on it”, Taylor-Brown’s performance showed not only her mental tenacity but also technical ability as she was able to control her bike in wet weather cycling only on an aluminium rim for the remainder of the ride. This is without even mentioning her sterling run catching up the 22 seconds lost to take the silver medal behind Bermuda’s Flora Duffy.

So, while it was a Games of so close yet so far for Britain’s triathletes, the winners of the events and clear team spirit among the GB athletes showed the real warmth that the sport can bring, even at the highest level. For Duffy, it brought the first ever medal for Bermuda, and for Blumenfeld, his performance was the cherry on top of the cake at his final Olympics. 

For Team GB however, it was their post-race interviews which highlighted their strength as a team as they showed themselves to be more than just sporting machines. The wonderful, shared experience sport can shine through the screen.

In a sport which can seem so lonely it could be hard to imagine how you can be supported and find friends in such a competitive situation. But during the interviews there were several stops for congratulations by passing athletes and an almost mother-like exclamation from Team GB athlete Vicky Holland who screamed “little Georgia has got a medal!” while she and Learmonth smothered Taylor-Brown in hugs. 

This unique almost family like bond between Britain’s triathletes is something special and what every sports-person aspires to be part of. However, most importantly it summarises what the Olympics and this sport is all about; you can be the most solitary of competitors, but the team and their backing is what makes the difference. 

This teamwork came to fruition in the inaugural mixed Olympic relay, fulfilling Hollander’s prediction that “we’re gonna win”. Claiming gold, Jessica Learmonth, Jonny Brownlee, Georgia Taylor-Brown and Alex Yee put in an outstanding race that was especially significant for Brownlee, his first Olympic gold after so long in his brother’s shadow.  

Looking beyond Tokyo, with two young athletes making their mark in these games, the future of British triathlon is something of an exciting prospect. Hopefully the next games bring less technical difficulty and a smoother road to gold for the athletes who put in a fantastic effort in the most challenging of conditions.