Hayden Wilde has won the world triathlon series finale event in Spain. Photo: Photosport
New Zealander Hayden Wilde has won the world triathlon series finale in Spain, with his main rival, Olympic champion Alex Yee, taking out the global title with his third placing.
In one of his best performances on the circuit, Wilde put a break on his rivals on the first lap on the run in Torremolinos after a stunning performance on the bike, eventually winning in one hour, 42 minutes, 22 seconds.
He was a minute ahead of Leo Bergere from France, with Yee third, nearly 90 seconds behind Wilde.
Wilde, who finishes third on the world standings behind Yee and Bergere, saw the result as part redemption for the Olympic final in Paris, when the gold medal appeared to be his, only to be run down by Yee in the dying stages. But even more it was a satisfying response to his seventh place at Weihai, China last month.
"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."
Yee needed a top-six finish to take out the world title and secured third placing with a fine performance on the run.
"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 Yee.
"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 people's faces and I'm world champion. There's always going to be pressure in these races… but pressure makes diamonds."
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