Bermudian world number one Flora Duffy has claimed the first gold medal of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, putting in a dominant performance during the women’s triathlon.
She defeated England’s Jessica Learmonth and Canada’s Joanna Brown for the medals, with Australia’s top-ranked competitor being Ashleigh Gentle, who came through in fifth position.
The first gold medal of the 2018 Commonwealth Games will go on the line in the women’s triathlon, with Australia’s athletes a strong chance. Join The Roar for live updates and coverage from 9:30am (AEST).
Not only will the winner have a Commonwealth Games medal to their name, but their country will be alone at the top of the medal table for at least a couple of hours.
Bermuda’s Floria Duffy is the favourite coming into the event, with the 30-year-old the best in the world by a considerable margin over the last 24 months.
Duffy has won the ITU World Championships two years in a row, not coming close to being beaten in 2017. Of nine events on the calendar, the Bermudan won six of them in a dominant performance.
While she hasn’t started the new season off with quite the same ferocity, all reports indicate she is training well and in good shape to take gold.
The home crowd will have plenty to cheer about as well, with Ashleigh Gentle finishing second in last year’s world championship, being a rapid improver since she made an Olympic debut in 2016 at Rio de Janiero.
Gentle, an Illawarra local, will be feeling the pressure, but won’t be the only local expected to perform after Charlotte McShane put in some impressive performances during 2017, winning one of the three events Duffy didn’t in Montreal.
New Zealander Andrea Hewitt is another strong contender. She won two events last year, but her form has fallen away. Despite that, the experienced 37-year-old won bronze in Melbourne in 2006 and will be keen to get ahead of the local favourites.
Of the other contenders, Great Britain’s Jessica Learmonth has started 2018 strongly after finishing second in the Abu Dhabi season opener. She finished behind Rachel Kammer of the Netherlands, who don’t participate in the Commonwealth Games.
Prediction
It’s little surprise Duffy comes in as the favourite. Her recent record speaks for itself and anything less than a gold medal would be a shock. Don’t be surprised if Gentle, on home soil, is her closest competitor.
Duffy to win gold and leave Bermuda on top of the medal table for a few hours.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of the women’s triathlon from 9:30am (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thanks Nicky and I do apologise for getting the Bermudian term wrong. Flora ran a great race.
Nicky Gurret
Guest
Thanks for the commentary and for letting us know that Flora Duffy won the woman’s triathlon at the 2018 Commnwealth Games.. We are all very proud of Flora in Bermuda. Please note the term is Bermudian Flora Duffy. Bermudan is incorrect. We look forward to the men’s triathlon and seeing both Bermudian Tyler Butterfield and Tyler Smith race.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Thanks for joining me this morning for our live coverage of the 2018 Commonwealth Games women's triathlon as Bermudan Flora Duffy picked up the first gold medal. Hopefully you enjoyed the call. I'll be back at 1pm (AEST) for the men's triathlon, but for now, it's time to flick over for the first session at the pool and Day 1 heats with Adelaide Docker providing the coverage. Keep it locked to The Roar for everything Commonwealth Games for the rest of the day and indeed the next 11 days. Bye for now.
Scott Pryde
Expert
FULL RESULTS 1. Flora Duffy (Bermuda) @ 56:50 2. Jessica Learmonth (England) + 0:43 3. Joanna Brown (Canada) + 0:48 4. Vicky Holland (England) + 0:52 5. Ashleigh Gentle (Australia) + 1:18 6. Sophie Coldwell (England) + 1:29 7. Nicole Van Der Kaay (New Zealand) + 1:41 8. Non Stanford (Wales) + 1:55 9. Gillian Backhouse (Australia) + 2:04 10. Rebecca Spence (New Zealand) + 2:22
Scott Pryde
Expert
Full results in a moment.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Roarers, thoughts on the race?
Scott Pryde
Expert
Gillian Backhouse is over in ninth spot for Australia. Plenty of exhaustion on the faces of the athletes. Spence rounds out the top ten with Charlotte McShane unable to crack it, finishing 11th about 2:30 behind.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Coldwell comes over in sixth after her strong swim, then young Kiwi Van Der Kaay comes over in seventh spot 1:41 behind. Stanford over in eighth.
Scott Pryde
Expert
Jessica Learmonth is going to hang on for second. Not by much, but she will get there just ahead of Joanna Brown. What an effort that is, given she cracked her shoulder in the season-opening Abu Dhabi triathlon. Viki Holland will come over in fourth, then Australia's Ashleigh Gentle in fifth. She will be disappointed by that after coming in with high hopes.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 57 minutes Duffy onto the finishing straight. She has dominated this race, then blew it apart on the run leg. She grabs a Bermuda flag and will run to the line with if waving behind her. FLORA DUFFY WINS THE TRIATHLON In just 56 minutes and 50 seconds, that was absolute domination.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 56 minutes Duffy is almost home. Onto the blue carpet up near the finish line now.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 55 minutes Gentle is a long way behind Holland and Brown now. Looks like either England or Canada will take the bronze medal behind Duffy and Learmonth.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 54 minutes Daylight behind Duffy now. She is home with the gold for Bermuda. It'll be just the sixth medal and second gold in history for Bermuda at the Commonwealth Games, despite the fact they have been competing since 1930.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 54 minutes Gentle is about six or seven seconds behind Holland and Brown at the top of the course here. That gap has gone from nothing in the last minute or so.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 53 minutes Holland and Brown are starting to edge away from Gentle for third place now. Good run from the pair here, but the Aussie struggling to hang on in the fight for gold.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 52 minutes Learmonth looks to be struggling big time here. She needs to find a way to hang on for silver - had 56 seconds through the end of the first lap, but the group behind looks strong. She doesn't and the gap to Duffy has opened up to maybe 40 seconds now as they head around the top of the course.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 51 minutes Duffy is increasing her lead to Learmonth now. It's going to be gold for Bermuda sometime in the next five or ten minutes.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 50 minutes The chase group for bronze is starting to crack open now. It looks like Holland, Brown and Gentle are running away from the rest of the pack back there.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 49 minutes The chase group of five are a fair way behind here. Well over a minute. The group is Holland, Gentle, Coldwell, Brown and Van Der Kaay. They are 1 minute and 12 seconds behind Duffy - approximately 56 seconds behind Learmonth. It looks like a race for Bronze in the chase group after they butchered chasing on the bike.
Scott Pryde
Expert
0 hours, 48 minutes Into transition, they come. Duffy has finished her first lap, making the turn at the end of the lap and then heading back over the line in a time of 48:02. Learmonth will cross over already 18 seconds behind.