Olympic London 2012 event report by Tim Porter

Tim Porter, Senior Research Executive (Communisations and Development) went to see the Olympic Triathlon in Hyde Park on 7 August and shares his experiences:

“With free-to-view spots across Hyde Park and two British brothers tipped for a gold-silver finish, it was not surprising that Tuesday’s triathlon was very busy. I had attempted to buy enclosed area tickets in the original lottery, but had predictably been unsuccessful.

The Twittosphere was filled with pre-race buzz – spectators tweeted about six to ten deep crowds and thousands (estimated 200,000 in total) tried to reserve a piece of action over two hours before. Alistair and Jonny Brownlee, from Bramhope in Yorkshire, have been burning up the triathlon circuit over the last few years. Less known than Ennis, Hoy, etc, they have risen to the top of their discipline aged 24 and 22. Their recent success has coincided with triathlon being one of the fastest growing sports in the UK.

I completed a couple of tri’s a few years back. For me there were two elements that made it tough. Firstly the fact that you are constantly moving for nearly three hours, and the energy that saps as a result. Secondly, moving from one discipline to another is disorientating and confusing for the body. For me it is one of the toughest and most exciting sports, so catching a glimpse near to Imperial was a great Olympic moment.

We attempted to catch the 1500 metres swim, but as non-ticketed viewers and despite being tall, it was only a flailing arm or two. Trees, periscopes and stepladders were well used. The cycle leg travelled down to Buckingham Palace via Constitution Hill, and there were several kilometres of viewing out of the 43 total. The cycle was the most viewed section with seven loops of the park. Although they raced past at close on 30 mph, we got good views of the Brownlees fighting out the lead, chased by a larger peloton. The run seemed out of reach for us, but Hyde Park has two large screens for the games, so we joined thousands of others for the 10 kilometre jog.

Finishing the cycle in the lead group, Alistair took the start of the run by storm, setting a blistering pace, with only Jonny and former world champion Javier Gomez staying with him. This was brilliant running, taking the race to the others, in blunt Yorkshire terms. Jonny drifted back into Bronze, not helped by a 15 second penalty for a transition infringement. But Alistair stretched Gomez on the penultimate lap and cruised to the win – walking over the line draped in the Union Jack. Inspiring, thrilling and relentless. I will hopefully, one day, complete another tri – if my body can handle it.”