Tyler Smith “Super Proud” Making His Debut
[Written by Stephen Wright]
Tyler Smith said he was “super proud” of making his Olympic debut in the men’s triathlon at the Paris Games today [July 31].
Smith, 25, finished 48th in 1hr 51min 59sec and said his first experience of competing on the biggest stage in his sport had been a learning curve.
“It’s mixed emotions,” Smith told Bernews. “I’m super proud to get here, but it’s not the result I would have wanted.
“I’ve had success at the Commonwealth Games [in Birmingham in 2022] and the Pan American Games [in Santiago, Chile, last year], and I’m usually able to have a good day in these major competitions, but that wasn’t possible today.
“I’ll have a closer look at the race with my coach.”
Many of the triathletes competing the men’s and women’s races today struggled to get to grips with the changing currents of the Seine River, and Smith said he was no different. Not being able to practise on the river after both swim sessions on Sunday and Monday were cancelled because of the quality of the water certainly did not help.
“The swim was crazy,” he said. “I got caught up in so much traffic and got pushed back.
“I couldn’t do any familiarisation on the course, and not being able to practise in the water because of the quality of it perhaps had something to do with it.”
Alex Yee, of Great Britain, won the race in 1:43:33.
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