Yee Kicks Competition to Win Gold in Paris

Good morning everyone,

I never knew I was into Judo until I found myself in a random Paris bar surrounded by frenzied French fans as they cheered on their Judoka to gold in the mixed team event. I was screaming at the TV just like them, even though I really had no clue what was going on!

But there is a certain je ne sais quoi about the Olympics that brings people together. And I hope the triathlon events at the Games have, and will, bring people together to enjoy our crazy sport.

In today’s edition:

• 🥇 A recap of the thrilling men’s Olympic triathlon,

• 🏊 Save energy during your swim by sighting better,

• 🏁 And a preview of Monday’s Olympic mixed team relay.

Thanks for being here,

-Matt Sharpe, newsletter editor

Have a triathlete in your life who can't stop swimming, biking, or running? Fire this off to them. Forwarded from a friend? Sign-up for free. 

TEMPO AT THE GAMES

With Spectacular Kick, Yee Takes Gold in Paris

What is it: After water quality issues postponed the Men’s triathlon on Tuesday, the race was given the go-ahead in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

• Great Britain’s Alex Yee, the pre-race favorite, used a devastating final kick to produce one of the most thrilling Olympic finishes in history.

Swim: Unlike the women’s race, there was no issue with the starter’s horn. And as the men jumped into the fast-flowing Seine they would be looking to make their own triathlon lore.

• Matt Hauser (AUS) led the first swim lap but still had many of the race favorites within his orbit.

• On the second lap, as the current began to break up the field, Alessio Crociani (ITA) would overtake Hauser and exit the swim in the lead.

Medal favorites including Leo Bergere (FRA), Pierre Le Corre (FRA), and Yee were within 30 seconds of the Crociani. While reigning gold medalist Kristian Blummenfelt (NOR) was 50 seconds behind the swim leaders.

• Hayden Wilde (NZ) exited the swim 60 seconds in arrears. A difficult but surmountable position. While Morgan Pearson, (USA) one of the most feared runners in the field, saw his chances of a medal slip away after exiting the water 1:20 back from the leaders.

Bike: Two distinct lead packs quickly formed on the bike. The first group featured the French trio, Yee, and recent T100 winner Martin Van Riel (BEL). The second; Wilde and Blummenfelt.

• Pre-race domestique speculation was confirmed early on the bike as Dylan McCullough (NZ) dropped back from the front pack to help the chase group bridge back to the leaders.

• On lap four both groups came together, and 32 athletes would continue together until T2.

Great Britain’s Sam Dickinson, the athlete chosen to support Yee in his gold medal bid stayed near the front of the massive pack and kept the pace high. Ensuring no breakaway attempt would be successful.

• He delivered Yee, and 30 other athletes into T2 ahead of the 10km run for eternal glory.

Run: Starting the run it was clear the advertised battle between Yee and Wilde would be contested to the bitter end.

• But in an unexpected plot twist, Wilde pulled away from the Brit just over halfway through the run.

• Yee looked to be struggling as a group containing Bergere, Le Corre, and Tyler Mislawchuk (CAN) were hot on his heels.

With only one lap to go, Wilde had built up a nearly unassailable 14-second lead over Yee….nearly. Over the final 2.5km Yee slowly pulled back the gap to Wilde. There was blood in the water, and the shark was circling.

With the finish line in sight, Yee pulled past Wilde who had no response. Once again, Britain had an Olympic gold medal in triathlon. New Zealand, a solid silver.

Watch: Alex Yee uses incredible kick to win Olympic gold. 

• In the battle behind, Bergere was able to outkick Le Corre on the finishing straight, winning France’s first individual male Olympic medal.

Full results

Tempo’s take: With a sprint reminiscent of Simon Whitfield’s incredible gold-medal run at the Sydney Olympics, Alex Yee wrote his name in the history books and, given his age, will already be a favorite to repeat in four years in Los Angeles.

And with all the talk of water quality ahead of the individual races, it was the fast-moving river current that affected athletes the most.

• The swim became a ruthless human vs nature battle that brought incredible intrigue to the competition.

• It reminded us that the swim can still play a role in creating an extremely compelling race product.

Of course, not all races can have rushing rapids. But they could be more entertaining with a longer swim distance.

Your move, World Triathlon.

FAVORITES

🏊 Open water sighting: You train hard to get through the swim as quickly as possible. So why would you do unnecessary extra yards? If you don’t know how to sight properly in the open water, than that’s exactly what you’ll do! Swim better with these open water sighting tips! [GTN]

🤮 Water quality worries: The Olympic triathlon has brought the issue of poor water quality for triathletes to the global stage. So why can you get sick after competing? And why is it becoming a more common issue for triathletes? The Tri Doc answers here. [Triathlete]

REEL TIME

A triathlon in a raging river? Lets leave that to the Olympians! 😱

rachelklamer

View more on Instagram

TEMPO AT THE GAMES

It’s France’s to Lose at Olympic Triathlon Mixed Team Relay

What is it: On Monday, Triathlon will once again take center stage at the Olympics as the always-electric Mixed Team relay kicks off at 8 AM local time.

Formidable French: Individual gold, bronze, and two fourth places? Yes, France is in form ahead of the mixed-team relay. Cassandre Beaugrand, Emma Lombardi, Leo Bergere, and Pierre Le Corre all swam front-pack and ran for glory on Wednesday. They will also have 300 thousand or so fans behind them on the course…

Title fighters: Great Britain are the reigning Olympic Champions, and Germany are the recently crowned World Champions. Both teams will provide stiff competition for France, but both could have an off day leaving the podium open for spoilers.

USA redemption: After tough individual races, the US team will be looking for redemption on the streets of Paris. The team is incredibly ready physiologically and could easily be on the podium. But they will have to come together as one to win the day.

Darkhorse picks: The Portuguese men finished 5th and 6th in the individual races and could be riding a high heading into Monday. New Zealand had a strong performance at the recent World Championships and know they are capable of something special. Australia too.

• And the Belgium Hammers are always a threat when the gun goes off.

Tempo’s take: Most likely, La Marseillaise will be blaring from the loudspeakers to thousands of rapturous French fans. But, as we saw in the individual races, chaos can strike at any moment.

The name of the game in the relay is always to stay within the front group. And I think we will see at least six teams close together after the first leg.

• But with the Seine* showing no signs of slowing down, it should quickly blow up after that.

Giddy up!

*Water quality tests show it could potentially end up a Duathlon. 

TEMPO EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE

• Are you making the four most-common nutrition mistakes?

• Why you need to train faster (not harder!) part 2.

• How this vet student manages pro triathlon AND vet school!

LATEST EDITIONS

• Beaugrand golden in Paris. Plus: How to manage strength fatigue!

• Men’s Olympic Triathlon preview. Plus: Easy, but effective performance improvements!

• The emerging battleground for triathlon entities? North America! Plus: get faster after 50!