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Helen Tucker causes upset to win world champs
Alistair Brownlee wins world under 23 champs
Corus Great Britain top medal table with three gold and a bronze
Corus Great Britain's Helen Tucker, 25, pulled off one of the greatest upsets in triathlon history as she was crowned as the 2008 triathlon world champion today in Vancouver, Canada as defending champion, Portugal’s Vanessa Fernandes, could only manager tenth.
Bridgend’s Tucker, who met the British Triathlon Olympic selection criteria two weeks ago in Madrid, was part of a British and American driven breakaway which included the heavy favourite, Fernandes. However she and Sarah Haskins of the USA drove off the front of the bike pack to establish an unassailable two minute lead by second transition as the British women controlled the chasing pack allowing the pair to escape.
Having run side by side for 9.9km, Tucker unleashed a strong kick to out-sprint Haskins as she crossed the line in a state of disbelief and elation. Further back New Zealand’s Samantha Warriner pipped Australia’s Erin Densham for bronze.
"Vancouver is my new favourite place," said a delighted Tucker, shortly after crossing the finish line in two hours, one minute and 37 seconds, four seconds ahead of Haskins. "It's not going to sink in for a few days. I wasn't planning on coming to worlds; it was kind of a last-minute decision. I'm glad I did now. The cold weather definitely made it harder, coming out of the swim my feet were really numb and tiredness started to set in a lot quicker on the bike.”
Tucker becomes only the second British woman to win the world championships after Leanda Cave won in Cancun, Mexico, in 2003. Her victory marks an exceptional return to form following two injury plagued years.
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2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships
Elite Women Results
1.5km swim, 40km swim, 10km run
Gold - Helen Tucker (GBR) 2:01:37
Silver - Sarah Haskins (USA) 2:01:41
Bronze - Samantha Warriner (NZL) 2:02:32.85
4th - Erin Densham (AUS) 2:02:32.96
5th - Emma Moffatt (AUS) 2:02:34
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Earlier in the day Alistair Brownlee from Leeds won the Under 23 World Championships as he dominated the international field amidst wet conditions, coasting to the finish line draped in the Yorkshire white rose flag.
The twenty year old, whose brother Jonathan took bronze in the junior men’s race on Thursday, finished third at the Madrid BG Triathlon World Cup a fortnight ago to meet British Triathlon’s Olympic Selection Criteria.
The Brownlees are the first brothers in history to medal at the same triathlon world championships. Brownlee also becomes just the second triathlete in ITU history to win both junior and under 23 world titles. Last year's under 23 world champion, Gregor Buchholz of Germany, showed off his strong finishing kick to edge out New Zealand's Martin Van Barneveld for the silver.
"I'm absolutely delighted, it's brilliant to be world champion again," said Brownlee, who won the junior world championships in Lausanne, Switzerland in 2006. Britain’s Todd Leckie also finished fourth, just outside the medals on his world championships debut.
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2008 Vancouver BG Triathlon World Championships
Under 23 Men Results
1.5km swim, 40km swim, 10km run
Gold - Alistair Brownlee (GBR) 1:54:38
Silver - Gregor Buchholz (GER) 1:54:57
Bronze - Martin Van Barneveld (NZL) 1:54:59
4th - Todd Leckie (GBR) 1:55:13
5th - Alexander Brukhankov (RUS) 1:55:37
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Today’s results conclude an impressive week for the Corus Great Britain squad as Kirsty McWilliam from Glasgow won the junior women’s title on Thursday with Jonathan Brownlee taking bronze in the junior men’s competition.
Corus Great Britain finished on top of the world championships medal table for the second time in three years with three gold and a bronze.
The British team now fly out to Austin, Texas, to participate in a heat preparation training camp for a fortnight before they travel to Des Moines, Iowa, for the next leg of the BG Triathlon World Cup circuit.
About British Triathlon
British Triathlon is the National Governing Body for triathlon, one the UK’s fastest growing sports. At international level Great Britain boasts a strong squad of world ranked elite triathletes who regularly achieve international success and has some outstanding young talent emerging from its development programmes. Since becoming an Olympic sport in 2000, British Triathlon has seen annual increases in membership numbers of 10%. There are over 650 triathlon events conducted in Great Britain each year, including the Corus Elite Series which attracts athletes from all over the world and the renowned Mazda London Triathlon. For more information visit BritishTriathlon.org.
About Corus
Corus is Europe's second largest steel producer with annual revenues of over £11 billion and a crude steel production of about 20 million tonnes. With main steelmaking operations primarily in the UK and the Netherlands, Corus provides innovative solutions to the construction, construction, automotive, packaging, mechanical engineering and other markets worldwide. Corus is a subsidiary of Tata Steel, the world's sixth largest steel producer. With the recent acquisition of Corus, the combined enterprise has an aggregate crude steel production capacity of around 28.1 million tonnes with approximately 82,700 employees across four continents.
Corus became the Premier Sponsor of British Triathlon in July 2006. Corus invests in medal winning success for the Great Britain Triathlon team as well as supporting grassroots level activity through a series of community based initiatives to develop triathlon for school age children through the Corus Kids of Steel events. The sponsorship has also allowed British Triathlon to create a new elite race series - The Corus Elite Series – comprising three events to be broadcast on Channel 4 this summer and will provide athletes with an opportunity to compete on home soil against some of the best athletes in the world in draft legal racing. (www.corustriathlon.com)
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