Eagle-eyed Olympics fans spotted a moment of true sportsmanship in the immediate aftermath of Alex Yee’s stunning gold in the men’s triathlon this morning.
New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde appeared to have one hand on the top prize as he opened up a sizeable lead over the rest of the field after the swimming and cycling events, with Team GB’s Yee 14 seconds adrift with one lap of running remaining.
French fans began roaring on their home favourite, Leo Bergere, who appeared to be closing the gap on Yee, but the British athlete held firm and began eating up ground on Wilde, with the finishing line coming into view.
And when Yee squeezed past Wilde, the Kiwi athlete simply had nothing left to give – his legs seemingly gone after a gruelling and compelling battle over the three disciplines.
Yee – who won silver in Tokyo three years ago – collapsed in a heap after storming home to seal Team GB’s fifth gold medal of the Games and the 26-year-old athlete was soon joined by Wilde on the track.
After Wilde was able to catch his breath, he showed his class by throwing his arm around Yee, congratulating his Lewisham-born rival on an incredible victory.
Speaking shortly after the race, Wilde passed on his congratulations to Yee and said he was ‘stoked’ for the Brit.
‘It was just a great race overall. He slowed up at 2km in, and I knew that was my time to go,’ Wilde said.
‘I got the gap and pushed and pushed and tried and tried. But I missed out at the end.
‘I gave it everything, I can’t leave this race with a “what if?”.
‘I’m just stoked for Alex as well. We’ve both choked in big grand finals. It’s really nice to pull one off for him and I.’
More to follow.
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