By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
(Reuters) - Norway’s Kristian Blummenfelt won gold at the opening race of the 2021 World Triathlon Championship series in Yokohama on Saturday after American Taylor Knibb crossed the line first in the women’s race to secure her place at the Olympic Games.
A strong performance in the 10 kilometre run phase of the three-discipline event saw Blummenfelt open up a decisive gap over Belgium’s Jelle Geens while Morgan Pearson of the United States finished third.
The race was the first to be held in the World Triathlon Championship series this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
by Doug Gray on 15 May, 2021 06:30
The 2021 World Triathlon Championship Series got up and running on Saturday with WTCS Yokohama, and it was a dream return to the blue carpet for USA’s Taylor Knibb as she delivered a timeless performance to win gold and guarantee herself a place on the Olympic start line.
It was a devastating bike with Maya Kingma (NED) that dictated the race, the pair putting in a huge margin on the rest of the field, USA’s Summer Rappaport eventually catching the rising Netherlands star to take silver, Kingma again showing her great form with a first WTCS medal.
Blummenfelt and Knibb win World Triathlon Championship Series races in Yokohama Saturday, 15 May 2021
Norway s Kristian Blummenfelt and the United States Taylor Knibb claimed victories in the men s and women s races at the season-opening World Triathlon Championship Series leg in Yokohama in Japan.
With a win in the women s race, Knibb secured her spot at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, crossing the line first in 1 hour 54min 27sec despite a strong challenge from Dutch triathlete Maya Kingma, who dictated the pace on the bike.
Knibb s compatriot Summer Rappaport eventually caught Kingma and finished second, with the Dutchwoman claiming bronze. I wasn t really thinking about Tokyo I just wanted to get to that finish line, Knibb said.
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