Brownlee moment inspires Yee in triathlon gold drama

The first Games in 20 years without a Brownlee brother still bore their influence in both the men’s and women’s races

- LAWRENCE OSTLERE

Alex Yee was 14 seconds behind his great friend and rival, New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde, and about to begin the final 2.5km lap of this Olympic triathlon when a familiar voice called out from the side of Pont Alexandre III. “Anything can happen, mate!” shouted Alistair Brownlee.

Yee was a wide-eyed 14-year-old in Hyde Park when he watched Brownlee win Olympic gold at London 2012, and had talked this week about picking up that legacy in Paris, in the first Games without a Brownlee brother for 20 years. For all the carb gels and isotonic drinks downed through an endurance race, there is nothing quite as powerful as the undying faith of someone we admire.

“It was a moment of belief,” Yee said. “It’s pretty special when somebody does that.”

Yee kept going, clinging on to Wilde’s shadow in the beating heat, gradually closing the gap until the Kiwi could feel someone on his shoulder. Wilde had poured everything into his solo burst and he had nothing left to give: “cooked”, he admitted, by the Parisian sun.

Yee passed him with 200m to go, adding a little acceleration on his way by, one last emptying of the tank. Wilde couldn’t find an answer, and a few moments later they were collapsed beside one another on the finish line, gasping for breath, Wilde patting his conqueror on the back. “He’s just a top bloke,” Yee said, with an Olympic gold medal hanging around his neck.

They have duelled many times on the World Triathlon circuit, with Yee often coming out on top in a sprint finish, and Yee won silver to Wilde’s bronze in Tokyo. Here, Wilde tried to create a different dynamic, surging clear and seemingly hurting his rival, but the result was just the same.