Canadian Rookie Paula Findlay Wins Gold in World Championship Triathlon Series Debut

CBC will broadcast the women’s World Championship Triathlon Series race from London where Edmonton’s Paula Findlay became the first Canadian to win on the WCS. The race can be viewed on CBC Sports, July 31, from 2-4 p.m. EST.

LONDON, England—Canadian rookie Paula Findlay shocked the world by winning the gold medal in her first-ever World Championship Triathlon Series race on the Olympic course in London, England on Saturday.

“Oh my God this is so unbelievable,” beamed Findlay at the finish line. “I felt better than ever on the run today, and just kept pushing as hard as I could.”

Running on pure guts and bravery, the 21-year-old took on three of the world’s best triathletes who finished in the top-10 at the 2008 Olympic Summer Games in Beijing. With just under one mile to go, the red-headed protégé threw down the gauntlet and the field could not respond.

After reaching the carpet for the finishing stretch, the Edmonton native flipped her sunglasses onto the top of her head and buried her face into her hands before grabbing the finishing ribbon as the clock stopped at one hour 51 minutes 48 seconds (1:51:48).

 “I was crossing the finish line and just couldn’t believe it. It was such a crazy feeling,” said Findlay, who is having a breakout season having won her first World Cup race in Mexico and finishing fourth at the prestigious Hy-Vee Elite Cup in Des Moines, Iowa last month. “I immediately thought of everyone at home and how cool this was to win such a big race. I’m still just absolutely shocked.”

The Hyde Park course is flat and fast in one of the world’s biggest cities. The 1.5-kilometre swim was in the picturesque Serpentine, which is a lake in the middle of the vast downtown park. The 40-kilometre bike was eight laps around the park. The athlete’s then ventured out for a final three loops around the park to complete the 10-kilometre run.

The rising superstar admittedly got banged up pretty good on the first lap of the swim and came out of the water in the chase pack. Trying to remain calm on the bike, Findlay slowly edged her way back into the lead group to set up a thrilling run.
Findlay ran four-abreast with Switzerland’s Nicola Spirig, Great Britain’s Helen Jenkins and Andrea Hewitt, of New Zealand, down the streets of London until the Canuck surged into the lead seconds after taking the bell lap.

“Running in a group of four at the front is tough because you know only three will be on the podium so I really wanted to do whatever I could to be in the top-three,” said Findlay. “I did not think I could break away, and I 100 per cent did not expect to win this race today. I was just doing everything I could to get a spot on the podium.”
With the rookie leaving the veterans in her dust, Spirig won the race for the silver medal after stopping the clock at 1:51:51. Helen Jenkins thrilled the hometown crowd by claiming the bronze medal at 1:51:53.

Findlay decided to delay her debut on the World Championship Series by missing last week’s race in Hamburg, Germany for some additional training.
“I felt so good on the run, in fact, I have never felt that way before so I think was prepared properly with all of the support staff here this week,” said Findlay. “I have had consistent training and I followed all of the workouts this past week so I think it helped me a lot for this race.”

Hopefully this week’s experience helps prepare Findlay for another golden run in two years at the 2012 Olympic Summer Games. Triathlon Canada used the event as an Olympic dress rehearsal by sending all of the necessary support staff that will travel with the team to the 2012 Games.

Three other Canadian women also hit the start line in London. Montreal’s Kathy Tremblay was 38th at 1:56:56, while Victoria’s Kirsten Sweetland was 45th at 1:58:18. Kyla Coates, also of Victoria, crashed early in the bike leg and did not finish the race.

The triathlon World Championship Series continues on Sunday in London with the men’s elite race.

Triathlon Canada is the governing body for triathlon in the country. Recognized as an Olympic medal sport since 2000, Triathlon Canada’s mandate is to promote, foster, organize and develop the sport of triathlon, and its related disciplines, in Canada. For more information on Triathlon Canada, please visit us at http://www.triathloncanada.com/ on the Internet.

Complete World Championship Series Results (1.5 km swim, 40 km bike, 10 km run): http://www.triathlon.org/
Top-Five Women’s and Canadian Results;
1. Paula Findlay, Edmonton, CAN, 1:51:48; 2. Nicola Spirig, SUI, 1:51:51; 3. Helen Jenkins, GBR, 1:51:53; 4. Andrea Hewitt, NZL, 1:51:55; 5. Laura Bennett, USA, 1:52:34.
Canadian Results:
38. Kathy Tremblay, Montreal, 1:56:56; 45. Kirsten Sweetland, Victoria, 1:58:18; DNF. Kyla Coates, Victoria.
 
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