A MOMENT of indecision cost Ireland’s Aileen Reid a medal in the triathlon on the opening day of the European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The failure to follow the wheel of Olympic champion Nicola Spirig early in the cycle leg meant that the Derry woman finished sixth after starting the competition as favourite for gold. Reid performed well after going off as top ranked competitor in the swim. She went into an early lead but was caught before the turn as the waters turned choppy in a fresh wind.
Nevertheless, she was 13th into the first transition, 30 seconds behind Russia’s Abrosimova and Klamer from the Netherlands. Reid gained time in the transition and hit the road on the bike in 10th, just 24 seconds back on the leaders. It soon became very clear that the Russian wanted no part in the front group as she quickly slipped back into the pack.
Meantime, Olympic silver medallist Lisa Norden made a break in the opposite direction and quickly opened up a 30-second gap with Klamer over the chasers.
The defining moment of the race came on the opening lap when Olympic champion Spirig set off to bridge the gap to the leaders. Reid looked up but vacillated and failed to follow her. In that moment her race was lost.
Meanwhile, Spirig made a rapid transition to the two leaders and all three women worked well together to open up a lead of two minutes by the halfway point of the 40km cycle stage.
In contrast, lethargy overcame the chasers, despite Reid exhorting her companions to share pace-making duties. The gap had grown to 2:37 as Reid entered the run in eighth place but by then it was all over bar the shouting.
Spirig, who represented Switzerland in the marathon at the European Championships last summer, cruised to victory as the temperature soared.
Behind, Rachel Klamer took silver, 1:16 back, after doing all the pacemaking for Norden who finished another two seconds back. A disappointed Reid took sixth place, 2:49 behind the winner.
In athletics, Mark English was expected to be the main rival to Olympic champion David Rudisha over 800m at the New York Diamond League.
But the threat never materialised from the Donegal man as the Kenyan stormed to victory in in a season’s best of 1:43.58. English’s time of 1:46.12 was slower than his seasonal best of 1:45.83 that he ran in Hengelo last month.
At home, Newcastle’s Kerry O’Flaherty set her second personal best in four days when she clocked 4:12.79 to finish runner-up in the 1500m behind New Zealand’s Angie Petty at the Irish Milers’ Club meeting in Leixlip.
Banbridge’s Emma Mitchell was eighth in 4:26.02. Letterkenny’s Danny Mooney was seventh in the men’s 1500m with a 3:45.79 timing. His club-mate Ann-Marie McGlynn registered 9:27.03 in a mixed 3000m.
Eighteen-year-old Derry City Track Club athlete Matt Doherty was the winner of the top race at the Acorns AC Night of 3000m Personal Bests in Magherafelt with a 9:23.3 clocking.
The Co Derry market town was also the venue for the women-only Stunnerz N Runnerz 5 Miles on Saturday morning with Cathy McCourt taking the top prize in 30:21. Stephen Duncan was a runaway winner of the Enniskillen 10K in 32:16 where Donna Evans was the first woman home in 39:47.
