Paris 2024 Olympic Games: Team GB’s Beth Potter earns triathlon bronze as France’s Cassandre Beaugrand wins gold
Updated 31/07/2024 at 12:43 GMT+1
Cassandre Beaugrand delivered a stunning performance in front of her home crowd to claim gold in the women's triathlon, becoming France's first-ever triathlon Olympic champion. Team GB's Beth Potter earned a bronze medal while Switzerland's Julie Derron crossed the line in second place to pick up silver. Potter's team-mate Georgia Taylor-Brown finished in sixth place.
Watch as Potter adds to Team GB’s medal haul with bronze in energy-sapping triathlon
Video credit: TNT Sports
Cassandre Beaugrand became France’s first-ever triathlon Olympic champion as she powered to victory on home soil at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Great Britain’s Beth Potter added to Team GB’s medal haul with the bronze medal after a spirited effort, while Switzerland’s Julie Derron claimed silver.
Georgia Taylor-Brown, a silver medalist at Tokyo 2020, finished in sixth position, while former Olympic champion Flora Duffy of Bermuda finished fifth.
Potter spoke after the race and told Eurosport how delighted she was to medal in what was a "surreal" experience in the French capital.
"Eight years ago I was sitting on Copacabana [beach] watching the women’s tri so it’s a bit surreal to be here and get a medal. I am so happy," the Scot said.
"It was hard out there today and I’ve not been feeling my best on the run this year, but I dug deep today and [was] rewarded with a bronze."
Duffy started strong and controlled the opening stages of the race, completing the 1500m swimming leg nine seconds ahead of her closest competition.
Team GB’s Potter climbed out of the river Seine firmly in the top five, before hopping on the bike and making a bid for the lead.
The Brit remained among the leading pack and momentarily raced ahead, but predominately drifted among the top 10 places.
Duffy continued to lead deep into the cycling leg, as Potter’s GB teammate Taylor-Brown emerged as a real contender.
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After racing through the pack from the back in the opening swim, the 30-year-old moved from 10th into the top three during the second phase of the race, joining Potter in the leading group.
Heavy rainfall in the French capital during the early hours of the morning meant the roads were wet and slippery, with riders having real trouble staying on their bikes.
Norway’s Lotte Miller suffered one of the many nasty falls by riders and was forced to withdraw following the incident.
One of those bidding for a medal position, Germany’s Laura Lindemann, lost her place in sixth when she fell and slid across the treacherous surface on the fifth lap.
Potter and Taylor-Brown both wrapped up the cycling leg in the top 10 as they took to the road, and it was Potter who moved to the front alongside Derron and French pair Emma Lombardi and Beaugrand.
By the five-kilometre mark – the halfway point of the running leg – gold medal holder Duffy had dropped out of the top five while Taylor-Brown began to struggle in sixth, with hopes of another Olympic medal beginning to fade.
The bunched-up leading foursome of Derron, Potter, Lombardi and Beaugrand built a considerable lead as they headed into the final stretch, battling for a place on the podium.
Derron, the 2021 European Champion, held the lead by a fraction for most of the run but dropped back in the final two kilometres as Beaugrand moved ahead in her home race.
Out of nowhere, Beaugrand found enough in the tank to speed ahead in front and boost her chances of a gold medal, with Potter left to dig in for the two remaining podium spots.
Beaugrand closed in on a historic victory in front of the jubilant French crowd lined along Pont Alexandre III, eventually crossing the line in a time of 1:54.55.
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Cassandre Beaugrand
Image credit: Getty Images
Six seconds later, Derron sealed silver medal while GB’s Potter collected bronze after finishing just 15s shy of the winner’s time.
Taylor-Brown recorded a sixth-place finish, with Lombardi and Duffy taking fourth and fifth spots respectively.
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‘Don’t let anyone tell you you’re too old’ – Tearful Potter basks in triathlon bronze
Video credit: TNT Sports
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