ITU London: Solid day out for Whitfield & Jones

Canadian Triathletes Kyle Jones and Simon Whitfield Leave London Olympic Test Event

with Clear Mission for Year Ahead

—Jones finishes as top Canadian in 19th, Whitfield hangs on to 23rd spot—



LONDON—Canadian triathletes Kyle Jones and Simon Whitfield turned in a solid outing at the ITU World Championship Series stop in London, and came away from Sunday’s race with the ticket to mounting the Olympic podium exactly one year away.

“It is simple. We need to run faster,” said two-time Olympic medallist Simon Whitfield.

The 26-year-Jones, of Oakville, Ont., finished as the top Canuck with a 19th-place result after clocking a time of 1:52:10. Whitfield, 36, clocked-in at 1:52:23 to take 23rd spot in the 67-strong field of the world’s best triathletes.

“It was super fast out there,” said Jones, who captured his first three ITU Continental Cup victories this year to go along with a 12th-place result at the World Championship Series last month for his best-ever finish. “I was really happy with the swim, and it started raining a bit on the bike so I was pretty cautious. I need to work with my coach and find more on the first two kilometres of the run.”

Both Canadians came out of the water with the lead group after having great 1.5-kilometre swims in the Serpentine, located in the centre of London’s Hyde Park, before settling perfectly into a large pack of riders for the 42.9-kilometre bike. The seven-loop course winds its way past many of London’s greatest landmarks including the Wellington Arch, Buckingham Palace, Constitutional Hill and Hyde Park Corner – one of the busiest traffic intersections in the world.

Britain’s Alistair Brownlee broke away from the pack with a group of four riders in the first loop on the bike, and surged immediately after the second transition, sprinting through a torrential downpour on the streets of Hyde Park lined with thousands of boisterous British fans. Brownlee clocked a winning time of 1:50:09.

Russia’s Alexander Bryukhankov won the race for silver in 1:50:34, while the younger Brownlee, Jonathan, locked up the bronze medal with a time of 1:51:04.

The London stop on the ITU World Championship Series was a learning experience for Triathlon Canada’s support staff and the nation’s top triathletes, who used the opportunity to simulate next year’s Olympic setting – from the race to the living arrangements. A number of positives came out of the London stop, and the team is aware of the work still needed to be done to accomplish their goal of winning a medal one year from now.

“My swim was great and the bike was absolutely perfect today,” said Whitfield. “One of the best pieces of advice I ever received from a coach was to just ran faster. We need to find what is missing to help us get faster.”

The Canadian squad will begin that mission by heading back to Victoria to prepare for the National Championships in Kelowna, B.C., August 20-21, before traveling to Beijing for the Grand Final of the World Championship Series, September 10-11.