New Zealand mixed triathlon team members Tayler Reid and Ainsley Thorpe in action at the Tokyo Olympics. Photo: Photosport
New Zealand has secured a bronze medal at the world triathlon relay championships in Hamburg in an encouraging result ahead of the Paris Olympics.
Tayler Reid, Ainsley Thorpe, Dylan McCullough and Nicole van der Kaay crossed the line third behind defending champion winners Germany and Switzerland, although some of the leading Games combinations chose not to compete.
New Zealand No.1 Hayden Wilde, who was in the team who snared silver last year, was also unavailable as he continues his pre-Olympic altitude training in Andorra.
His place, in what was otherwise New Zealand's four-person team for the race in Paris on 5 August, was taken by Reid.
Reid, who said he had a point to prove, gave New Zealand the lead after the opening leg.
They were fifth after Thorpe's second leg before McCullough put them ahead again following a strong third leg.
Photo: John Cowpland/Photosport Ltd 2021
Despite being passed by Germany and Switzerland, Van der Kaay was third-fastest on the final leg, keeping Great Britain comfortably at bay in fourth place.
McCullough, who will make his Olympic debut, opted to bypass Saturday's individual race to focus on the relay.
"It's a really special feeling to get a medal with the team and yeah, good sensations leading into Paris in a few weeks' time," he said.
New Zealand's triathletes will complete their Olympic preparations in Banyoles in north-east Spain.