RaDragon:
You mean Al Trautwig? He usually does the Tour de France and the Ironman because he is so knowledgeable in those areas. His commentary is usually very good, if a little dramatic.
This introductory triathlon at the Olympics was NOT an unqualified success. As many of the triathletes know, bike drafting is a controversial issue. Most purists do not like to see any drafting allowed because, unlike most bike races, the triathlon is SUPPOSED to be an individual event. Most triathlons still do not allow drafting. Unfortunately, drafting was allowed in this race. As a consequence, American triathlete Sheila Taormina, who won the swim by something like 37 seconds, was soon caught on the bike leg by the chasing peloton. After a leisurely bike leg, the race simply came down to a question of who was the best runner. Pretty much the same thing happened in the men's race. Aside from those quibbles, I think it was a beautifully staged and well-run triathlon and I hope lots of people get the "bug" as a result.
The swimming has really been the high point of the meet with the rivaly between the U.S. and Australia being even better than I expected. The Ozzies winning the 4 x 100 Free Relay, which the U.S. has never lost was certainly the high point of these games so far. In addition, the Dutch, Italian, and Japanese swimmers have made a very good showing. The rest of the world can now compete with the U.S. in swimming.
Anyway, I'm so stoked, I think I'll go out for a quick spin on my bike!
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram