Docherty scores second Olympic medal
20 Aug 2008
Germany’s Jan Frodeno used all the last-minute gusto he could muster to outkick Canadian Simon Whitfield for the Olympic Triathlon gold medal at Beijing. Frodeno, who had never before won a major ITU event, began building steam on the run and managed to work his way into the lead pack by the end of the second lap. Then, with mere meters to go, the famously fierce-finishing Whitfield broke free from Frodeno, Bevan Docherty of New Zealand and ITU world champion Gomez. But Frodeno answered with a surge of his own, powering past the 2000 Olympic gold medalist to take top honors in 1:48:53.
The competition was nothing short of ferocious from the get-go. After New Zealand’s Shane Reed, Frederic Belaubre of France and Aussie Courtney Atkinson led all swimmers out of the reservoir, a monstrous lead pack of about 30 athletes formed on the bike. Most of the pre-race favorites, including all three Americans - Hunter Kemper, Matt Reed and Jarrod Shoemaker - rode in the front group. One name mysteriously missing from the pack was 2006 world champion Tim Don of Great Britain whom many considered to be a medal contender in Beijing.
Although a few non-podium threats pulled to the front of the group, no competitor made a successful break until near the end of Lap 4, when the trio of Mexican Francisco Serrano, Luxembourg’s Dirk Bockel and Axel Zeebroek of Belgium pedaled away from the crowd. Once Bockel and Zeebroek found themselves taking the most turns in front, the two dropped Serrano going into Lap 5 and maintained a 50-plus-second margin on their pursuers heading into T2.
Of course, with superstar runners such as Gomez in the field, Bockel and Zeebroek’s time in the spotlight soon faded. Although the duo kept their lead to begin the run, two-time Hy-Vee winner Rasmus Henning of Denmark led a chase pack consisting of medal contenders Whitfield, Gomez, Docherty, Spain’s Ivan Rana, Frodeno, Kris Gemmell of New Zealand and young Brit Alistair Brownlee that soon overtook the frontrunners.
The run quickly became heated, as Spanish teammates Gomez and Rana worked together to stay up front and Brownlee looked prime to make his big-time breakthrough. The lead group tapered to a gang of five - Gomez, Rana, Docherty, Brownlee and Frodeno - that stuck together through three laps. Whitfield hung a bit off the back but kept the group within reach, while Unger, Henning, Atkinson and Kemper trailed behind.
With just a short ways to go, a strong-looking Gomez pulled slightly ahead of the others, his ear-to-ear grin making it look like he would tear away any second. But just then, Whitfield fired his engines and began picking off the lead guys one by one to claim the front spot. As the Canadian flew, Gomez began fizzling, allowing Frodeno and Docherty to pass him as well. Just when it seemed like Whitfield would take his second Olympic gold medal, Frodeno dug deep to unearth some last-minute energy and blasted past Whitfield to steal the win by five seconds in 1:48:53.
Docherty ran in 12 seconds behind Whitfield to claim his second Olympic medal, while Spaniards Gomez and Rana finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
Kemper outdid his previous-best Olympic finish of ninth with an impressive seventh-place showing. Shoemaker logged a respectable 18th place in 2:00:46, while Reed took 31st with a time of 1:52:30.
2008 Men’s Olympic Triathlon
Ming Tomb Reservoir, Beijing, China
Monday, August 18, 2008
1. Jan Frodeno (GER) 1:48:53
2. Simon Whitfield (CAN) 1:48:58
3. Bevan Docherty (NZL) 1:49:05
4. Javier Gomez (ESP) 1:49:13
5. Ivan Rana (ESP) 1:49:21
6. Daniel Unger (GER) 1:49:43
7. Hunter Kemper (USA) 1:49:58
8. Rasmus Henning (DEN) 1:49:57
9. Igor Sysoev (RUS) 1:49:59
10. Frederic Belaubre (FRA) 1:50:00