Triathlon at the 2024 Summer Olympics

The triathlon events brought controversy to the 2024 Games due to the condition of the River Seine, where the swimming was to be held, and specifically the quality of the water. The men’s race was postponed for 24 hours after thunderstorms caused polluted water to enter the river, and some competitors were alleged to have suffered from symptoms of E. coli after the race. Indeed, if the race had been called off on two more occasions, it was mooted to run it as a duathlon.

Despite the problems, the triathlon programme was successful in bringing large crowds onto the streets of Paris, and there was a triumphant start when home favorite Cassandre Beaugrand ran away from her opposition to win the women’s race. The men’s race saw 2020 relay gold medalist Alex Yee fall behind New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde halfway through the concluding run, only for the Briton to claw back 20 seconds in the final 2 kms of the race and overtake the Kiwi as they turned the final bend.

The final race of the three was the mixed relay, which turned to be one of the most dramatic of any race at the Paris Games. Germany, Great Britain, and the USA shadowed each other for the entire race and no team ever got a lead of more than a few seconds. On the approach to the line, Germany’s Laura Lindemann timed her sprint to perfection and won by less than a second. Great Britain were originally announced as silver medalists, but this was later overturned on further examination of the photograph and reallocated to the USA.