Olympics-Triathlon-Britain win first-ever mixed-relay gold (updated)

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31/07/2021 01:30

(Adds detail, quotes)
    By Mitch Phillips
    TOKYO, July 31 (Reuters) - Alex Yee delivered a superb final
leg as Britain won the inaugural triathlon mixed relay gold
medal on Saturday, their four-person team completing a wonderful
week for the country, after also collecting two silvers in the
individual events.
    The United States took silver as their two men finally
bagged their first male golds in the sport, with three-times
world champions France taking bronze.
    It was an emotional triumph for Jonny Brownlee, who won
individual bronze and silver in 2012 and 2016 and finally bagged
a gold to enable him to share family bragging rights with double
individual champion and big brother Alistair.
    Jess Learmonth led Britain out, while Georgia Taylor-Brown
and anchor leg Yee, the individual silver winners, completed the
impressive all-round display.
     The victory takes Britain’s medal tally to eight, including
three golds, since the sport was introduced to the Olympics in
2000.
    "The Olympics is complete – it feels absolutely amazing. My
third Olympics and I can finally walk away with gold," said
Brownlee.
    "The Olympics is always special but to do it as a team is
absolutely amazing."
    The race format features teams of two men and two women, who
each complete a short-course race of 300 metres swim, 6.8km bike
and 2km run and makes for fast-paced action.
    First-leg Learmonth had a lightning T2 to open a small gap
going in to the run but Britain, the U.S., Germany and the
Netherlands were all together handing over.
    It was carnage in the transition area after the first
handover, with half the exhausted first-leg women scattered over
the blue carpet and medical staff hauling them to their feet and
dragging them clear as the heat took its toll.
    The four teams remained together after the second bike leg
but Brownlee flew out of T2 and immediately opened a gap, which
he extended to nine seconds over the U.S. with a gutsy run on 
his last competitive appearance over the shorter distances as he
plans to move up to Ironman.
    Taylor-Brown swum superbly to stretch the lead to 23
seconds, with Taylor Knibb forging clear from the chase pack to
leave the U.S. clear in second.
    Taylor-Brown handed over to Yee, probably the fastest runner
in the field with the 2018 British 10,000m track title to his
name.
    On the last leg double world champion Vincent Luis
overhauled Morgan Pearson on the swim then drove on strongly to
catch Yee on the bike.
    Two years ago Luis beat Yee in a photo finish in the Tokyo
test event but the young Briton made sure there was no repeat as
he got a break in transition and poured on the power to
immediately open a telling gap and he eventually won by 14
seconds.
     Behind him Morgan Pearson overhauled Luis for silver.
     "I was pretty scared taking over, the guys had been perfect
and I wanted to do it justice," Yee said.
    "When Luis came past I knew I just had to get on there as my
run is my strength so I had to hang on. Then I just went for it
right at the start of the run to get an early gap."
    

 (Reporting by Mitch Phillips and Amy Tennery in Tokyo; editing
by Stephen Coates)
 ((Amy.Tennery@thomsonreuters.com; 646-223-6343;))