Wilde detonates Torremolinos Finals win but it's fourth time a charm for World Champion Yee

by doug.gray@triathlon.org on 20 Oct, 2024 05:33

The monkey is well and truly off the back. Alex Yee came in to his fourth successive Championship Finals knowing that a top six finish would be enough to secure him the world title, but that since 2021 he has not quite been able to see out his opportunities. In Torremolinos on Sunday, it was Yee’s time at last, the Olympic Champion rallying after title rivals Hayden Wilde and Leo Bergere had blown the race wide open on the bike.

Yee was not to be outdone on the run, however, and was soon picking his way towards the safety of the top three, none of the rest of the chase pack anywhere close enough to influence the title race.

Up ahead, Hayden Wilde had put together the best race of his career so far, the Olympic silver medallist soaring over the 10km run off a blistering bike to take the tape by a minute from Bergere. Second for the Frenchman saw him hold on to the Series silver, bronze likewise seeing Wilde finish the season with Series bronze.

“We always put on a show for the Grand Final, and fair play to the guys who made it a hell of a show,” said a thrilled Yee. “I was proud to be part of that. Getting out of T1 I wasn’t in the best position or the best legs to get out. These boys are the strongest in the game and if they go you’re in danger, and I just had to play to my strengths and bike as hard as I could and run as hard as I could. This has evaded me for the last three years and makes it even sweeter. It is probably something that has haunted me day in day out and I wanted to put on a show and a smile on peoples’ faces and I’m World Champion. There’s always going to be pressure in these races… but pressure makes diamonds.”

Hauser sets early pace

Yee took up position on the right side of the beach start with Bergere and Wilde for close company, Matthew Hauser and Vincent Luis opting for the far left, and it was Hauser setting the early pace on up front.

At the Aussie exit after the first 750m it was Hauser, Kenji Nener, Mark Devay, Vetle Bergsvik Thorn and Dorian Coninx, Miguel Tiago Silva and Max Stapley out front, Bergere 7 seconds back, Wilde 14s and Yee 17s off the front.

The pack bunched up somewhat on the way back to the beach for the second time, Wilde maintained his position, Yee’s deficit went out to 22 seconds.

Power move from Bergere

A fluid T1 saw Hauser and Silva out first, but after some ridiculous power and commitment from Bergere and with Wilde on his wheel, suddenly five men had hauled away early on lap one, Vincent Luis, Tayler Reid and Simon Westermann making the five incredibly strong men on the bikes fancying their chances of maintaining the break. As the unfortunate Hauser crashed out, the chasers grew further adrift.

Yee was at the front of the chasers working to keep the gap under 15 seconds after one lap and knowing that if he let them go, his title chances could go with them, the likes of Vasco Vilaca, Tim Hellwig and Morgan Pearson also pulling some turns out front.

After chasers slip further back, Yee delivers

At the end of lap two the lead was out to 25 seconds, growing to over a minute by the end of lap five. The gap kept going out and threatened to hit two minutes as the front five burst into transition for the second time.

Hayden was fluid in T2, out and away just ahead of Bergere, and it was another 100 seconds until Vasco Vilaca led the chasers into transition.

Yee also blew out of the gates, eager to hammer home that top 6 position that he knew the title required, Wilde’s pace out front just as hot, the gap to the front never shrinking.It was, however, nearly a minute less to Luis, Reid and Westermann after just one lap, and he reeled that trio in after 6km.

At that point, the best three triathletes in the world settled in to their medal positions and Yee knew the world title was his even as in the world settled into their podium placed for the final 2.5km lap.

Wilde entered the finish chute with a minute of daylight to Bergere and soaked up the probably the most complete race of his already glittering career, Bergere taking the silver and Yee bronze. Dorian Coninx and Pierre Le Corre moved into fourth and fifth, Csongor Lehmann in sixth and Tayler Reid seventh. Vincent Luis and Tyler Mislawchuk held on for eighth and ninth as a flying Hugo Milner clocked the quickest run of the day of a ridiculous 28m 47s, a fully 30 seconds faster than Yee to round out the top ten.

HAYDEN WILDE:
“I came out of the swim in a good position and had a plan to sit on the fourth wheel then Leo went out like a bat out of hell and I saw a gap and just thought, ‘why not?’, and we just worked so well together. I had the same sort of plan as the Olympic Games really, two laps hard, one lap easy then go and had a really nice gap. It’s a bit disappointing not to win the World Championships but to win the Grand Final is something special.”

“It’s a bit of redemption for Paris, but more so for Weihai, that course was perfect for me. Today I turned up with my bike legs back on and executed all three disciplines really well. I knew there was a little gap on the bike and I just put my head down and it was nice to go with Vince in his last race.”

LEO BERGERE:
“I was surprised the gap got so big so early on the bike. We continued to push with the guys and made the race exciting and I had a lot of fun… but my legs were hurting so much on the run. I knew I had to secure silver to be second in the world and took it at my own tempo. I’m enjoying 2024 and the season has been the most exciting for me of my career and what a pleasure to share the breakaway with Vincent in his last race.”

Full results available here

Article tags world championships hayden wilde alex yee torremolinos