Taylor Knibb and Morgan Pearson Compete at Paris Olympics

Taylor Knibb, who lives and trains in Boulder and former University of Colorado runner Morgan Pearson both competed on the US Olympic team in Paris after officials gave the go-ahead for athletes to swim in the Seine River. Knibb finished 19th in the women’s race in 1:58:37, and Pearson finished 31st in the men’s event in 1:48:26.

Cassandre Beaugrand Wins the Women’s Race for France

From the start gun, it was defending champion Flora Duffy making a big statement of intent, and as the athletes drifted at the turn, the Bermudian began to attack the headlong current. As the pontoon ramp neared, even Duffy looked like she was struggling to make progress, but emerged with daylight to the chasing Bianca Seregni (ITA), Vittoria Lopes (BRA), and Potter was with Maya Kingma (NED).

The swim had tested the field to the maximum, the current demanding huge reserves of energy on the route back to the pontoon as Flora Duffy spearheaded the field, before the lead bike pack whittled down to nine at the bell.

Early into the run it was Julie Derron leading the way with Beth Potter and Emma Lombardi alongside Beaugrand and slicing through the streets together as Georgia Taylor-Brown and Flora Duffy’s challenges faded, before Beaugrand detonated the final kilometre and pulled away.

Behind her it was Switzerland’s Julie Derron with an outstanding silver, Britain’s Beth Potter with the bronze ahead of Lombardi.

“I just saw my whole family and they’re very emotional, so i’m in tears,” said Beaugrand. “If you would have asked me even this morning I wouldn’t have believed it. I threw up this morning right before the start. I was in a total panic. I kept telling myself, ‘Cass, you can’t repeat what happened in Tokyo’. But I told myself I’ve been doing triathlon for 15 years or more, it’s just another race and, finally, it’s nothing I don’t already know how to do. I took confidence in that and I just didn’t want to have any regrets at the end. I’m just happy to have got revenge on my past.”

Alex Yee Wins the Men’s Race for Great Britain

When Alex Yee (GBR) took the bell he found himself 15 seconds off leader Hayden Wilde (NZL) and was staring at a second successive Olympic silver. What came next was nothing short of extraordinary, as Wilde started to feel the heat and the Brit slowly reeled him in, passing just before the final turn to the blue carpet and taking the tape.

It was ecstasy for Yee, heartbreak for the New Zealander, while the crowd roared home Leo Bergere for a fine home-nation bronze.

“I gave my best account of myself on the run,” said Yee. “At 5k I was going through a real bad patch and honestly probably thought the race was over, but I wanted to give myself that one last chance and not give up on what I worked so hard for and what so many other people have worked with me to achieve. I owed it to them and myself to give it one last chance. Triathlon racing for me has always been about racing through three events, not just the one, so I was really proud to be an animator in the race, put on a show, and hopefully people were able to enjoy.”