England triathletes combine talents to claim Commonwealth relay gold
Another day, another gold for Alistair Brownlee and Jodie Stimpson – but this time it was the relay triathlon and four of England’s troupe were centre stage on the podium at Strathclyde Country Park. Jonny Brownlee and Vicky Holland were the others to be crowned Commonwealth champions after a resounding victory in a race that had everything from bravura to belly flops.
The Brownlee brothers, Stimpson and Holland had competed in the individual disciplines here only on Thursday but – like the rest of the field – one day of rest had to suffice before a second afternoon of endurance that made for captivating viewing.
In the end England’s contingent emerged as comfortable winners in a shortened version of the full triathlon. In a repeat of the scenes earlier in the week it was Alistair Brownlee who strolled down the home stretch draped in two crosses of St George, high-fiving spectators and crossing the line 49 seconds ahead of South Africa’s Richard Murray to secure a memorable gold, taking the spoils in the first relay triathlon at a major championship.
This time, though, Brownlee left the flag of Yorkshire with the waiting crowd before crossing the line. This victory was not his alone but one also with roots in Gloucester and the Black Country, won in a cumulative time of 1hr 13min 24sec as all four athletes completed a 250m swim, 6km cycle and 1.6km run.
“It feels a bit strange to win a gold medal finally but it’s nice,” said Jonny Brownlee, so often used to following his older brother through the finishing stretch. “I want to win but I normally get beaten by Alistair, so to get a gold medal is pretty special.”
Alistair said: “It’s very different for us doing something as a team. Although we race together all the time, to be able to share an achievement is really good. We’ve raced so many relays together over the years and we really enjoy doing it. It’s fantastic to be able to do it on a major scale like we did today.”
Stimpson and Holland won gold and bronze respectively in the individual event on Thursday and both produced impressive performances. Holland started England’s effort and Stimpson took the third leg, as all the athletes cheered on their team-mates after negotiating the shortened course themselves. “Myself and Vicky are on cloud nine – we are riding high,” Stimpson said. “It’s so exciting; it’s not only exciting for the spectators, it’s brilliant to be a part of. It’s definitely full on; but it shows weaknesses. You have to be strong and you can’t have a weak link in the team.”
Holland said: “You know you’ve got the best two guys in the world on your team and that’s a great place to be in. But equally it adds to a little bit of the pressure because you don’t want to mess up.”
This was the inaugural triathlon relay at a major championship and one that was watched by hordes of spectators on the banks of the loch. Australia were edged out of silver by South Africa, finishing three seconds behind their southern-hemisphere adversaries, but there was only jubilation for all the teams that achieved a podium finish.
New Zealand were brief leaders and, although Jonny Brownlee struggled in the transition zone after earning a significant gap on the bike, he had soon regained his place at the front of the pack. Stimpson extended England’s lead with a dominant display of running and Alistair Brownlee could afford to ease up towards the end with victory assured.
“We’d love to see this in the Olympics,” said Alistair, who unsuccessfully campaigned with his brother to get the relay event into the 2016 Games. “I think it’s a fantastic Olympic event. The inclusion of men and women racing together, there’s the team element, the tactical element – it’s short, fast and good to watch.”
Entertainment was certainly not in short supply as athletes tapped each other in before darting along an extended runway to dive into the water. Some efforts were more refined than others, with the adrenaline rush of starting the race too much for certain competitors.
Some dives were more suitable to a municipal pool than a Commonwealth Games but the crowd were the beneficiaries. Every running leap was met with an expectant cheer, and the odd guffaw, with Mauritius the worst culprits in the belly-flop stakes.
Jonny Brownlee said: “Everyone always gets that wrong. I raced the Youth Olympics in Sydney in 2009 and I ran down and I did a flip because it was a lot further than I thought. I actually did a somersault in the water. Now I just run a bit slower.”
Stimpson said: “I actually practised that when we were warming up because I had never done the third leg before. I didn’t want to end up on my face when I was running in and I didn’t want to bomb in.”
England, though, avoided embarrassment and emerged on top yet again.
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