Olympics: Germany win triathlon mixed relay gold

After hundreds of combined kilometers on foot, bike and in the Seine, it all came down to a sprint finish. Laura Lindemann just had enough left in the tank to outkick her rivals from the USA and Great Britain to win Germany Olympic gold.

This is just the third medal Germany have won in triathlon, after Stephan Vuckovic won silver in Sydney 2000 and Jan Frodeno won gold in Beijing in 2008.

"I felt pressure, I wanted to bring it home for us," Lindemann told German broadcaster ZDF: "But it was also fun because I knew it could be something big. It was very hard, it's unbelievable." 

The mixed relay, introduced in the previous Games, sees four athletes from each team (two men and two women) complete sprint triathlons, in this case a 300m swim, 7m bike ride and a 1.8km run. The final in Paris was close throughout, until Lindemann pulled away at the last. The French team could manage only fourth, after an early crash in the cycling stage dented their hopes.

It is the sixth German gold of a Games that has, so far, been underwhelming for the European country. The others have come in equestrian (3), rowing and swimming.

The leadup to the race, and indeed all of the triathlon events throughout the Games, was dominated by talk of the water quality of the River Seine, in which the swimming element takes place.

The test swims for the mixed relay, scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, were canceled because of bacteria levels in the water. Then the Belgian team withdrew after one of their athletes, Claire Michel, was hospitalized, though the source of illness has not been confirmed.

"We are thinking here of the guarantee of training days, competition days and the competition format, which must be clarified in advance to ensure that there is no uncertainty for athletes, entourage and supporters," read a statement from the Belgian Olympic Committee.

mp/jt (SID, DPA)