0:00:03 > 0:00:04We are a pair.
0:00:04 > 0:00:07We both know that we wouldn't be where we are today
0:00:07 > 0:00:08without each other.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11The fact that we do get grouped together means
0:00:11 > 0:00:13we do do a lot together and I quite enjoy that.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15Brownlee wins in London!
0:00:15 > 0:00:16Jonathan...!
0:00:16 > 0:00:18Alistair Brownlee is the champion.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21Two brothers on top of the Olympic podium.
0:00:21 > 0:00:25This is the tale of two brothers who bicker and fall out
0:00:25 > 0:00:28like any brothers but, together, like nothing more
0:00:28 > 0:00:31than taking on the world and winning.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34# Marching on together
0:00:34 > 0:00:36# We're going to see you
0:00:36 > 0:00:38# Tra-la-la-la! #
0:00:43 > 0:00:46What annoys you about Alistair?
0:00:46 > 0:00:48Erm, I think him turning up late,
0:00:48 > 0:00:51I think he gets a kick out of making people wait.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54So in the mornings, say, in Spain, I'm all ready to go,
0:00:54 > 0:00:56he's always the last one to come down.
0:00:56 > 0:00:58That really annoys me.
0:00:58 > 0:00:59And I think he knows it annoys me as well.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02We have to give Alistair a right to reply here.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04What about Jonny annoys you?
0:01:04 > 0:01:08Erm, well, the fact that he actually thinks I'm late on purpose to
0:01:08 > 0:01:11annoy him, that's quite annoying, because obviously I'm not.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17We're not just talking about a couple of brothers from next door,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20we're talking about the best triathletes there's ever been
0:01:20 > 0:01:22in the history of the sport.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26Alistair Brownlee is the Olympic triathlon champion!
0:01:26 > 0:01:31And there will be both of the brilliant Brownlee brothers
0:01:31 > 0:01:38on the Olympic podium, as Jonathan comes home for bronze.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43You are Olympic champion.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45Thank you very much.
0:01:45 > 0:01:48Feels a bit underwhelming in a way because Jonny's just collapsed.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50The medal ceremony was delayed a while because
0:01:50 > 0:01:55of a medical problem for younger brother, Jonny. He's OK now.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58When we were kids, we competed over absolutely everything.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Board games, badminton in the garden, cricket
0:02:01 > 0:02:03and there were lots of times where we used to fall out
0:02:03 > 0:02:05and the board games were tossed up in the air.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08We literally played everything and competed over it
0:02:08 > 0:02:10with Ed trying to keep up somewhere in the middle
0:02:10 > 0:02:11or siding with one of us.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13Jonathan was always much better with me,
0:02:13 > 0:02:15he's always been a lot more kind of understanding
0:02:15 > 0:02:18and friendlier and he always played a lot more sports.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21We always used to go out in the garden and play football together.
0:02:21 > 0:02:23But Alistair was a lot more individual,
0:02:23 > 0:02:24he's kind of been on his own a lot.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27He was not bothered about playing football, he's never been able to
0:02:27 > 0:02:30play football very well, to be honest with you.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34Family aside, the one person who knows the Brownlees best
0:02:34 > 0:02:37is their coach and mentor, Malcolm Brown.
0:02:37 > 0:02:39The first time I met Alistair Brownlee
0:02:39 > 0:02:42was at the Carnegie running track
0:02:42 > 0:02:44and this gentleman came walking across the track
0:02:44 > 0:02:50with his two boys and I said, "Are you here to train?"
0:02:50 > 0:02:52And he said, "Well, yes."
0:02:52 > 0:02:55He pointed to the taller of the two, which was Alistair,
0:02:55 > 0:02:57and he said, "This is Alistair.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01"He's quite good at cross-country running but he lacks a bit of speed.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04"I was just wondering if there's anybody here who can help him out."
0:03:04 > 0:03:06I said, "Oh, that's interesting."
0:03:06 > 0:03:08I said, "And the little one?" - Jonny -
0:03:08 > 0:03:11He said, "Oh, forget him, he's a footballer."
0:03:11 > 0:03:15There was times when I was doing other things with football,
0:03:15 > 0:03:18rugby, and I dreamed of playing for Leeds United
0:03:18 > 0:03:19and dreamed of playing rugby.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22I'd been doing a bit of swimming, a bit of running
0:03:22 > 0:03:24and I think something like eight or nine years old,
0:03:24 > 0:03:27saw my uncle doing a triathlon and just decided to give one a go.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30enjoyed endurance sports. Swimming and running were the things
0:03:30 > 0:03:32that I was good at and enjoyed doing
0:03:32 > 0:03:34and I think triathlon just had that extra element
0:03:34 > 0:03:36of obviously the cycling but also the technical aspect
0:03:36 > 0:03:37of jumping on and off a bike,
0:03:37 > 0:03:40the slight tactical aspect of other people and, you know,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43putting your T-shirt on, even having to remember your number.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45All those things added a bit more interest to a sport
0:03:45 > 0:03:47to a nine-year-old
0:03:47 > 0:03:50that made it a bit more exciting than just swimming up and down.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53What were they like at that age, as characters?
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Alistair would generally come into to the pool about four o'clock,
0:03:56 > 0:03:58session didn't start until half past four.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01He was one of the kids that would always want to know what the
0:04:01 > 0:04:03session was. I think that's the reason why he came in,
0:04:03 > 0:04:05because I always wrote the session on the board first.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07So he'd come, he'd observe,
0:04:07 > 0:04:10he'd look and he'd say, "Don't like that set.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12"Don't want to do that. Can we change that to that?
0:04:12 > 0:04:14"Can I do this instead of that?"
0:04:16 > 0:04:20But getting Jonny inside to start training was just...
0:04:20 > 0:04:23I'd be banging on the window.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25Doing the... Doing this. "Come on!"
0:04:25 > 0:04:27And he's be standing at the window going...
0:04:27 > 0:04:29"No, not yet."
0:04:29 > 0:04:30And I'd be like, "Now!"
0:04:30 > 0:04:33And then he'd come on t'poolside, muddied up as well.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35"Go and have a shower."
0:04:35 > 0:04:37Ten minutes later, he'd stroll back in again,
0:04:37 > 0:04:38warm-up was just about finished.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40"Am I doing my warm-up now?"
0:04:40 > 0:04:43"No. You've already missed the first 400 talking.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45"Can we...can we get going?"
0:04:45 > 0:04:48I'd heard about Jonny because Jonny was two years younger
0:04:48 > 0:04:51and with Alistair being in senior school, you heard the name Brownlee
0:04:51 > 0:04:54in junior school, you thought, "Hello, this is another star."
0:04:54 > 0:04:57And of course the reports coming through were very, very good.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00Do you think that it was essential for Jonny
0:05:00 > 0:05:03that he had his big brother sort of forging a path for him?
0:05:03 > 0:05:05I think it was a very good thing for him
0:05:05 > 0:05:07and in some ways a very difficult thing for him
0:05:07 > 0:05:12because obviously the name Brownlee was associated with great success.
0:05:12 > 0:05:14OK.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17One of the influences in their lives early on
0:05:17 > 0:05:20was my co-coach at the Leeds Triathlon Centre, Jack Maitland.
0:05:20 > 0:05:21And Jack was looking after them
0:05:21 > 0:05:24as part of the northern talent group
0:05:24 > 0:05:28and he gave me a statement of how good they were,
0:05:28 > 0:05:33which is they were amongst the best in the north of England at the time.
0:05:33 > 0:05:39But what struck me really was their absolute love of the outdoors
0:05:39 > 0:05:41and training.
0:05:41 > 0:05:43So when I spoke to them about what they'd been doing
0:05:43 > 0:05:46before they'd come to me, say, on a Tuesday night,
0:05:46 > 0:05:51they'd already cycled to school, swam, had a run at lunchtime
0:05:51 > 0:05:55and then turned up to do a training session.
0:05:55 > 0:06:00And it struck me that these characters were really exceptional
0:06:00 > 0:06:03in their enjoyment of hard work.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10I think it clicked very quickly, really.
0:06:10 > 0:06:11Kind of the back end of 2005,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14I went to my first world championships as a junior,
0:06:14 > 0:06:15was absolute useless.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17At the time I thought I didn't have that good a race
0:06:17 > 0:06:19but I actually had one of the quickest runs and I thought,
0:06:19 > 0:06:21"I'm maybe not a million miles off here,
0:06:21 > 0:06:22"I'm very young in my age group,
0:06:22 > 0:06:25"it kind of shows me that with a bit more, I could be there."
0:06:25 > 0:06:29I definitely kind of went away from that and thought, "Well, you know,
0:06:29 > 0:06:32"I can be a lot better next year, I'm going to go away and be better."
0:06:32 > 0:06:36The word determination is just synonymous with Alistair, really.
0:06:36 > 0:06:38Alistair was a racing machine
0:06:38 > 0:06:39because he not only ran for the school
0:06:39 > 0:06:42but he was running for Bingley Harriers at the same time
0:06:42 > 0:06:43in fell races,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46many of which I didn't even know about, to be quite honest with you.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49He'd go off in the midweek, he'd train in the afternoon
0:06:49 > 0:06:51and then race in the evening, and I didn't know.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53But that was the way he was.
0:06:53 > 0:06:55He just loved racing, I think.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58Alistair would work his transitions after training.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00His mother often used to say,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03"I haven't had to wash his towel for a month cos it's still dry."
0:07:03 > 0:07:06Because I think he'd just go straight into the changing rooms,
0:07:06 > 0:07:08shake off and he'd be in his clothes
0:07:08 > 0:07:12and often, his mum would bring his bike down on the back of the car
0:07:12 > 0:07:14and Alistair would be out,
0:07:14 > 0:07:17I'd still be wiping the board from the session
0:07:17 > 0:07:19and I'd see him going flitting past the window
0:07:19 > 0:07:22and jumping on the bike and waving at his mum and he'd be gone.
0:07:22 > 0:07:25Jonny, in the changing rooms, having a lovely long shower,
0:07:25 > 0:07:27waiting for a lift home in the car.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30But as they got older and Jonny was starting to get more
0:07:30 > 0:07:32into his triathlons as well, it would be,
0:07:32 > 0:07:34"How fast can we get on the bike?"
0:07:34 > 0:07:36And Jonny didn't want to get left behind.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39Are the boys very much a product of their environment?
0:07:39 > 0:07:43Well, if you look around - hills, hills, hills everywhere.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45You're either going up a hill or down a hill.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48It's tough country and I think the boys have always loved
0:07:48 > 0:07:51tough conditions. I mean, the tougher the conditions, the better.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54I suppose there is that kind of rugged tradition in Yorkshire,
0:07:54 > 0:07:57particularly the fell running and there's that kind of...
0:07:57 > 0:07:59I wouldn't say it's a myth but...
0:07:59 > 0:08:02The tough Yorkshireman and I think... It's there.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04It's there, it's there with them. Yeah.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06Were they always competitive,
0:08:06 > 0:08:08with each other and other people in the group?
0:08:08 > 0:08:12Yeah, the pair of them were always up for a bit of a race
0:08:12 > 0:08:16to the top of the next hill, first man to the cafe, etc.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18Yeah, they've...
0:08:18 > 0:08:20I mean, anything that they'd do, as seen through the years,
0:08:20 > 0:08:22they're always trying to be the best at it.
0:08:22 > 0:08:24Always trying to win.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31A lot of people, when they hear about us training 35 hours a week,
0:08:31 > 0:08:35think that's a lot of training
0:08:35 > 0:08:39but 90% of our training is doing that kind of talking first.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42You're like this, you're riding round in somewhere beautiful
0:08:42 > 0:08:46and on a day like today, it's fun.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50So I'd say 90% of it is fun, 10% of it is not so fun.
0:08:50 > 0:08:54The worst thing that I hate more than anything is the cold,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58so there's those days when, for some reason, Alistair's dragged me
0:08:58 > 0:09:01into the Dales for two hours and I've charged into Dales
0:09:01 > 0:09:03and it starts snowing and hailing
0:09:03 > 0:09:06and I'm thinking, you know, "50 miles home.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09"That's a long way to go in the hail."
0:09:09 > 0:09:11I just love being in pain.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14You know, I actually love this, I thrive off pushing myself,
0:09:14 > 0:09:16not only if it's a competitive situation
0:09:16 > 0:09:19and I'm trying to hang onto someone but also just on my own, you know,
0:09:19 > 0:09:21being able to push myself and hurt
0:09:21 > 0:09:24and I've got no idea where that's come from.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27I think it's just years and years of doing it maybe
0:09:27 > 0:09:29and enjoying doing it.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31Although I think my dad'd tell you that, you know,
0:09:31 > 0:09:35even the first time he saw me do cross-country as a six-year-old,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37I went red in the face and looked like I was about to die,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40so maybe I had it then as well.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43Now, your mum tells a story when you were probably one year old,
0:09:43 > 0:09:47and Alistair had started going to nursery and you crawled around
0:09:47 > 0:09:50so much looking for him that you'd actually make your knees bleed.
0:09:50 > 0:09:51THEY LAUGH
0:09:51 > 0:09:54The fact that Alistair was always doing things ahead of you,
0:09:54 > 0:09:57did that make a real difference to you?
0:09:57 > 0:09:59Yeah, definitely, yeah. I remember looking up to Alistair.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02I remember moving into our house,
0:10:02 > 0:10:04I've got a memory of choosing the room next to Alistair
0:10:04 > 0:10:07even though it was the smallest room in the house.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09For some reason, I wanted to be next to Alistair.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11When ran in the Yorkshire cross-country team,
0:10:11 > 0:10:13when he came back with a Yorkshire vest
0:10:13 > 0:10:16to compete in the national champs, I thought, "I can do that as well."
0:10:16 > 0:10:18And I've been able to do that for my whole sporting career.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22I'm probably not the personality who's going to go out there
0:10:22 > 0:10:25and, you know, do it for myself without someone else kind of
0:10:25 > 0:10:28showing me the way before, and Alistair definitely did that.
0:10:28 > 0:10:29I think I am more of a team player,
0:10:29 > 0:10:34I'm a lot better at kind of listening to other people
0:10:34 > 0:10:37and involving their ideas, whereas Alistair's a bit more,
0:10:37 > 0:10:40"It's my way." Is Alistair's way always the right way?
0:10:40 > 0:10:42In Alistair's head? Oh, in Alistair's head,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45definitely it's always the right way. And if it's not the right way,
0:10:45 > 0:10:47he'll just argue that it is the right way, whatever,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49and then he'll change opinions to what he was
0:10:49 > 0:10:52and say that he was arguing that way anyway.
0:10:52 > 0:10:55But, yeah, he always thinks he's right, definitely.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57'It's good in a way having someone who is a strong personality
0:10:57 > 0:10:59'because it means that when you do something,
0:10:59 > 0:11:01'you 100% believe in it
0:11:01 > 0:11:04'and I think that's really, really important in sport.'
0:11:06 > 0:11:09About half an hour and we'll come back here.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Does it feel like a relationship of equals or does it still feel like
0:11:17 > 0:11:20Alistair, cos you're the big brother, you have the final say?
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Er, I think it is more a relationship of equals.
0:11:23 > 0:11:27I like to think my point of view is more significant
0:11:27 > 0:11:30because I know more so... It can't be equals then, can it?
0:11:30 > 0:11:32From that one comment, surely it can't be equals?
0:11:32 > 0:11:33No, it's, like, equal as in
0:11:33 > 0:11:36if you had as much clever things to say as me,
0:11:36 > 0:11:39we'd be equal but you don't. It's a lot like...
0:11:39 > 0:11:42I feel like you've answered the question. Yeah!
0:11:42 > 0:11:44It's a lot like the old adage isn't it?
0:11:44 > 0:11:47Where if, you know, if someone...
0:11:47 > 0:11:49If you disagree with me, we have a talk about it, I listen to
0:11:49 > 0:11:53your point of view, we have a little debate and then I decide.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Yeah, well, there you go.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02Did Alistair take control of his own destiny, I suppose, quite early?
0:12:02 > 0:12:06Very. There was a conversation that Jack Maitland had with me
0:12:06 > 0:12:09on one of the regional development camps when they were teenagers
0:12:09 > 0:12:12and said, "Coz, his training programme's all over the place.
0:12:12 > 0:12:14"You see him the most, you're the one that has
0:12:14 > 0:12:17"contact with him every day." And I just said...
0:12:17 > 0:12:19"I just coach him for the swimming."
0:12:19 > 0:12:22I said, "Alistair does all of his running
0:12:22 > 0:12:23"and his cycling away from me."
0:12:23 > 0:12:26I said, "I don't know enough about the sport."
0:12:26 > 0:12:30So he just sort of said, "Yeah, but he is doing a lot of swimming
0:12:30 > 0:12:32"for a triathlete." So a few sessions later, I said,
0:12:32 > 0:12:35"Alistair, have you got time for a word?" "Yeah."
0:12:35 > 0:12:36I said, "Jack's a bit worried.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39"He thinks you need to balance your training programme." "Why?"
0:12:39 > 0:12:41I said, "Do you think you're doing too much?" "No.
0:12:41 > 0:12:46"I know what I need to be doing in ten years to be in the Olympics."
0:12:46 > 0:12:50And the back of my brain thought, "Ooh, what's he just said?"
0:12:50 > 0:12:52And I went, "Right."
0:12:52 > 0:12:55And he said, "I've got to get through the 1,500 metres
0:12:55 > 0:12:59"on an Olympics really easy. Really easy.
0:12:59 > 0:13:03"Because I need to blow apart on the bike, you know, and the run."
0:13:03 > 0:13:05And I said, "Right." And he said, "Three sessions a week's
0:13:05 > 0:13:07"not going to do it, though, is it, Coz?
0:13:07 > 0:13:09"I need to get out feeling fresh.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11"And I need a training programme that's going to do that."
0:13:11 > 0:13:14He said, "I'm not changing that, I know what I need to do in ten years
0:13:14 > 0:13:16"and I'm doing it now so I'm ahead."
0:13:16 > 0:13:18At 14. He knew.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21There was no doubt that he was trying to become a world champion
0:13:21 > 0:13:25as a junior. There was no doubt that he would want to then
0:13:25 > 0:13:26be a world champion as a senior.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28There's no doubt if you're the world champion as a senior,
0:13:28 > 0:13:31you want to be the Olympic champion.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34The Brownlee brothers are taking no prisoners here this afternoon.
0:13:34 > 0:13:36ALISTAIR: I don't think they're tactfully that proficient
0:13:36 > 0:13:38a lot of the times, these guys.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40Both Alistair and Jonny in a race, you know,
0:13:40 > 0:13:42pretty ruthless individuals
0:13:42 > 0:13:44and, you know, they want their space in their water
0:13:44 > 0:13:46and they don't want anyone to come into that
0:13:46 > 0:13:48and there's a consequence if anybody does.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51They a have a view of the way that the race should go
0:13:51 > 0:13:53and how others should race and they feel quite irritated with
0:13:53 > 0:13:57people who aren't trying to optimise their own performance
0:13:57 > 0:14:00because they can see that if these guys did do different things
0:14:00 > 0:14:03they would be better, so they try to give advice during the race.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12They're pretty ruthless competitors but top-class sport is ruthless.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15And if you're not willing to be ruthless
0:14:15 > 0:14:16then go and do something else.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19I think big races are the thing that probably brings us together
0:14:19 > 0:14:22a bit more than anything, because it's at that point where
0:14:22 > 0:14:25it feels like it's us two against everyone else in the world
0:14:25 > 0:14:27and I think that pushes us together more than anything.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29Rather than each other pulling us together,
0:14:29 > 0:14:31everything else pushes us together.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Almost every big race we've started, still on the start line
0:14:34 > 0:14:36and it's like, you know, we're kind of in this together.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40Do you think he would've achieved what he's achieved without you?
0:14:40 > 0:14:41Without you pushing him on?
0:14:41 > 0:14:44I don't think he would've achieved that if I wasn't there.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46Not as good.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49He would probably argue that he would've still achieved it
0:14:49 > 0:14:52but I don't think sometimes he realises what I can add to it
0:14:52 > 0:14:55and how strong it is, the feeling that someone's chasing you
0:14:55 > 0:14:58and you want to kind of push yourself on the whole time.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00And that he doesn't realise how strong it is
0:15:00 > 0:15:03that there wasn't a day where he could back off or a session
0:15:03 > 0:15:05that he could back off because I was chasing after him.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07And specially these last couple of years,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10I think I've been very important to him as a training partner,
0:15:10 > 0:15:13as someone he can talk to as well.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16Has that competitiveness in training ever spilled over?
0:15:16 > 0:15:18Yeah, it has spilled over, definitely, and...
0:15:18 > 0:15:20Not so much in training sessions
0:15:20 > 0:15:23but kind of training races where we've been doing races
0:15:23 > 0:15:25that are low key and supposed to be fun.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27Like in 2012,
0:15:27 > 0:15:30we raced the Yorkshire Cross Country Champs and we were first and second
0:15:30 > 0:15:33and we'd had a busy week and we should've just kind of
0:15:33 > 0:15:37run in together or... But we were absolutely maxing it out
0:15:37 > 0:15:39with a K to go and it was a couple of weeks later
0:15:39 > 0:15:41that Alistair had tore his Achilles
0:15:41 > 0:15:44so that was probably...went a long way to doing that.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48And if both of us had backed off 10, 15 seconds
0:15:48 > 0:15:50in the last little bit, which we could've easily done,
0:15:50 > 0:15:52then we would've been fine.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54With those extra couple of years,
0:15:54 > 0:15:58Alistair's been able to take it that little step further than Jonny.
0:15:58 > 0:16:05And I think a little bit of that is Jonny's still the younger brother.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07A little bit of, you know...
0:16:07 > 0:16:10He needs to still come out of the shell a little bit and
0:16:10 > 0:16:13just convince himself that he can kick Alistair's arse.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16LAUGHTER
0:16:16 > 0:16:17Not that Ali's going to let him!
0:16:19 > 0:16:22If Jonny does fall below Alistair's high standards,
0:16:22 > 0:16:24his big brother is quick to let him know.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27They are separated by a metre,
0:16:27 > 0:16:30as Alistair stops to bellow some encouragement
0:16:30 > 0:16:32towards his younger brother.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34Gomez isn't broken yet.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38Gomez is still fighting for his world title.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40Oh, my word, it's Gomez's victory!
0:16:40 > 0:16:43I'll be giving him a lot of stick for that.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45He's thrown a world title away today
0:16:45 > 0:16:48for being a complete tactical numpty.
0:16:48 > 0:16:51Is that typical of their relationship? Yeah, absolutely.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53Alistair'll be the first one to criticise Jonathan.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56Like, whatever happens, even if he did something well,
0:16:56 > 0:16:59Alistair would pick something at him and tell him what he's doing wrong
0:16:59 > 0:17:01so it just sums it up, really.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03But it was true, he was right in the end, weren't he?
0:17:03 > 0:17:05He was an absolute tactical numpty.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07But, no, Jonathan probably wouldn't take it from me obviously
0:17:07 > 0:17:10but he'll take it from Alistair, being the older brother,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13and he obviously knows what he's on about, don't he, Alistair?
0:17:13 > 0:17:17Fast forward to his World Series victory in Gold Coast in 2015.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Lessons had been learned and Jonny appeared on the verge
0:17:20 > 0:17:22of becoming top dog in the Brownlee household.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26His chance to prove it came at the race in London at the end of May.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28But disaster struck.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30Jonny Brownlee has problems with his bike.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32He's remounted
0:17:32 > 0:17:35but there's clearly a mechanical issue for Jonny Brownlee
0:17:35 > 0:17:39before he's even got stuck into the first lap.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41Alistair took the win.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43Jonny was 42nd.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46That led to a significant injury which meant
0:17:46 > 0:17:52that he was unable to compete in the Olympic test event in Rio.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54After London, Jonny went to Switzerland to train,
0:17:54 > 0:17:58and it was there that he suffered a stress fracture in his hip.
0:17:58 > 0:17:59When injury strikes,
0:17:59 > 0:18:02the boys turn to British triathlon's lead physio,
0:18:02 > 0:18:03Emma Deakin.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06The thing about athletes racing at this level,
0:18:06 > 0:18:09they're always pushing their bodies to the extreme, really.
0:18:09 > 0:18:10And a stress fracture is an injury,
0:18:10 > 0:18:12it does what it says on the tin, really,
0:18:12 > 0:18:16it's like when a bone's stressed constantly, constantly,
0:18:16 > 0:18:18and I think you just get to the point where that's actually
0:18:18 > 0:18:22tipped over the good side and then that causes a stress fracture
0:18:22 > 0:18:24so there's loads of factors that can contribute as well
0:18:24 > 0:18:27that we know about and that's the major thing, really, is
0:18:27 > 0:18:29learning from that, for Jonny, so looking actually
0:18:29 > 0:18:32what his training load was when he got his stress fracture,
0:18:32 > 0:18:34what was his nutrition like, what was his recovery like,
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and then we can look at all that to try and prevent it happening again.
0:18:37 > 0:18:42That was the first time in ten years that Jonny's had a long period
0:18:42 > 0:18:44away from training and racing.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46So I think it was actually a good thing for him
0:18:46 > 0:18:49and I think he's a better athlete now
0:18:49 > 0:18:52and makes better judgment calls now because of that experience.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54Alistair, on the other hand, you know,
0:18:54 > 0:18:57has had a number of occasions in the last ten years,
0:18:57 > 0:19:01has had two or three months when he can't run, for instance,
0:19:01 > 0:19:05and he knows how to deal with it psychologically.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09It's Alistair's left ankle that has caused most of the problems.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12He might be the fittest, fastest and most determined
0:19:12 > 0:19:14but injuries to that ankle have stopped him
0:19:14 > 0:19:17from challenging for world titles in every year
0:19:17 > 0:19:19since winning the Olympics.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22Kind of had a big conscious effort this year.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26Obviously had, you know, ankle reconstruction surgery,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28which is a big deal in itself.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32And I've been working very hard
0:19:32 > 0:19:34doing everything I can with that ankle
0:19:34 > 0:19:37and instead of doing the training that I think I need to do.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41And if something goes wrong with the ankle, something goes wrong
0:19:41 > 0:19:43and that's a pain in the arse.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46I'm really doing everything I need to do kind of around the ankle
0:19:46 > 0:19:47at the moment instead.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50So, yeah, that's the limiting factor.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54Do you feel like you know that ankle better then your own ankle now
0:19:54 > 0:19:57after all the times you've treated down the years?
0:19:57 > 0:20:00I know this ankle better than any other ankle, yeah.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03So this is the one that had the reconstruction.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06Yeah, so basically he had two procedures at the same time.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08So he had the... In basic terms,
0:20:08 > 0:20:11he had the back of the ankle washed out and cleared out
0:20:11 > 0:20:14so that the tendons could move properly and freely through the back
0:20:14 > 0:20:18of the ankle, and then Alistair actually had a tendon
0:20:18 > 0:20:21and a ligament on the outside of the ankle missing,
0:20:21 > 0:20:23so it was really unstable and then obviously he's quite
0:20:23 > 0:20:26a toe-y runner, which means that you run in an unstable position
0:20:26 > 0:20:28on an unstable ankle
0:20:28 > 0:20:31so he had the lateral side of his ankle stabilised.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33I think you'd probably had, like, what,
0:20:33 > 0:20:36nearly three years of it being painful? Yeah.
0:20:36 > 0:20:37Yeah, so I think... On and off.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40..that's the main thing, like, for me, the biggest outcome
0:20:40 > 0:20:43of the operation was for Alistair to be able to run pain-free
0:20:43 > 0:20:46because then I don't get...
0:20:46 > 0:20:49When you're injured or off or ill or whatever, you know,
0:20:49 > 0:20:50you don't feel quite right.
0:20:50 > 0:20:53I think that there's a lag, you know, cos you train so hard,
0:20:53 > 0:20:55you're competing and travelling and stuff.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Definitely you have a few weeks where you think, "Actually,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01"it's quite nice to relax a bit," but you don't feel quite right.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05You just feel...I just feel hot and bothered and not, you know,
0:21:05 > 0:21:06not quite with it.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09I don't feel mentally with it, I don't feel physically with it
0:21:09 > 0:21:11and, you know, you really miss the exercise.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14Alistair's good in terms of he's intelligent
0:21:14 > 0:21:15and he researches it himself
0:21:15 > 0:21:18and he's got his own ideas and his own opinions.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21I think my job is really just to find out options
0:21:21 > 0:21:24and to look at sort of the best ideas around an injury
0:21:24 > 0:21:26or best ideas around a treatment programme
0:21:26 > 0:21:28and then let Alistair choose what he wants to do.
0:21:28 > 0:21:31Cos it's his body and it's his ankle and he's got to run so,
0:21:31 > 0:21:33yeah, I think that's the main thing.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35And when he does as he's told, he's really good.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38When he does as he's told, I like that. Yeah.
0:21:38 > 0:21:41And when he doesn't do as he's told, he just doesn't tell me.
0:21:43 > 0:21:48Alistair Brownlee's tactics have proved to be a stroke of genius.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55Alistair takes the win in Stockholm, a stunning success.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59Have you got a favourite race win?
0:21:59 > 0:22:02I won a race in Stockholm in 2013 where there was no way
0:22:02 > 0:22:04I really should've won that race.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07I just chose my moment right on the bike to get away
0:22:07 > 0:22:09and just had to hold on for dear life on the run.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11I wasn't really that fit and I was thinking,
0:22:11 > 0:22:13"These guys should be running me down."
0:22:13 > 0:22:16But, yeah, just pure determination, really.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18What does winning feel like?
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Winning feels very different depending on the event.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24I wanted to win the Yorkshire Cross Country Champs when I was 12,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27I think, just as much as I wanted to win the Olympics when I was 24.
0:22:27 > 0:22:29I've had some great experiences where I've thought, you know,
0:22:29 > 0:22:30"That was fantastic,
0:22:30 > 0:22:34"I got everything out of myself that day, everyone was competitive."
0:22:34 > 0:22:35You know, the Olympics was like that for me.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37It was that kind of experience.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39I think if I've had
0:22:39 > 0:22:41a really good day and I get beaten, you know,
0:22:41 > 0:22:44I might struggle to process it that bit more.
0:22:44 > 0:22:48But times when I've had a race and I think, "Actually..."
0:22:48 > 0:22:51So, like in Yokohama when I raced last year,
0:22:51 > 0:22:53I just felt terrible for the whole race.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56The speed rises another notch.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58Gomez has got him!
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Gomez will win in Yokohama.
0:23:02 > 0:23:03I just had nothing.
0:23:03 > 0:23:06The worst I've ever felt in a race in my life.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08'To cross the line in second, I thought, "This is brilliant."
0:23:08 > 0:23:11'Like, "There's no way I should even be here,'
0:23:11 > 0:23:14"I only got here by just putting myself through more
0:23:14 > 0:23:15"than anyone else has,"
0:23:15 > 0:23:17and so I was actually really satisfied with that.
0:23:17 > 0:23:20So I think you can take something away from every performance
0:23:20 > 0:23:22like that in a way, which is a good thing,
0:23:22 > 0:23:25but also it's a bit dangerous as well
0:23:25 > 0:23:27because, you know, I don't like this attitude of,
0:23:27 > 0:23:29"I had a bad race but it's a learning experience."
0:23:29 > 0:23:33I think that's a very convenient excuse to a lot of people -
0:23:33 > 0:23:36why it's a good reason to have bad performances when it's not.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40'There is another threat and it comes from Spain.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43'Javier Gomez has five world titles to his name
0:23:43 > 0:23:46'and should the 2012 silver medallist triumph in Rio,
0:23:46 > 0:23:51'he could claim to be the greatest of this great generation.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53'But if Alistair can become the first triathlete in history
0:23:53 > 0:23:58'to defend an Olympic title, then that crown is arguably his.'
0:23:58 > 0:24:01Gomez from the outside looks like he's played it very sensibly,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04"OK, I'm not going to be the best on a one-off occasion
0:24:04 > 0:24:05"but I'm going to be consistent."
0:24:05 > 0:24:09Whereas you love being the best on the big races.
0:24:09 > 0:24:12Yeah, Gomez has done a very good job of being consistent,
0:24:12 > 0:24:13there's no doubt about that.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17It's a skill and, you know, he's absolutely nailed that skill
0:24:17 > 0:24:18and done very, very well at it
0:24:18 > 0:24:20and that's why he's won the world titles.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23I had the choice to race like that and try and win world titles,
0:24:23 > 0:24:26if I wanted, and trained differently and try and race differently.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29So it's the choice I made and I think it's been quite closer
0:24:29 > 0:24:30than it looked, you know,
0:24:30 > 0:24:33just a few kind of unlucky little things and decisions I've made.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36It could've been very different in terms of the world titles.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38How does the rivalry with Gomez compare
0:24:38 > 0:24:40to your rivalry with Jonny?
0:24:40 > 0:24:43If indeed it is a rivalry with Jonny.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47Well, I'd much prefer Jonny to beat me than Gomez to beat me.
0:24:47 > 0:24:49I suppose that's the crunch of it.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52And, yeah, I think at the end of the day when it's done, that's that,
0:24:52 > 0:24:54and I want to beat both of them.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56I'm actually probably a bit more worried about Jonny
0:24:56 > 0:24:59on a day than I am about Gomez. Why's that?
0:24:59 > 0:25:02I think Jonny's got the capability to have a really, really good day
0:25:02 > 0:25:05but, you know, I suppose come to the Olympics,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08yeah, I'd much preferred Jonny to beat me than I would Gomez.
0:25:08 > 0:25:11What does it feel like, beating Alistair?
0:25:11 > 0:25:14I've beaten Alistair a few times. In Hamburg 2013,
0:25:14 > 0:25:16he'd tried to come round me with about 100 metres to go
0:25:16 > 0:25:19and I knew that I was going to beat him then because he came,
0:25:19 > 0:25:21he'd just got past me and I had quite a lot left so I thought,
0:25:21 > 0:25:24"Right, see you later. I'm off now."
0:25:24 > 0:25:26It's a sprint finish between the brothers.
0:25:26 > 0:25:28It's going to be tight between them
0:25:28 > 0:25:30but it's Jonathan's win!
0:25:30 > 0:25:34A first reaction is, you know, "Wow, I've won,"
0:25:34 > 0:25:36if I have won or had a great race
0:25:36 > 0:25:39and the next reaction definitely is a bit,
0:25:39 > 0:25:41"That was a bit weird. I've upset the norm.
0:25:41 > 0:25:43"I shouldn't have beaten Alistair."
0:25:43 > 0:25:46And some of that I really need to get over
0:25:46 > 0:25:48because you kind of expect Alistair to win
0:25:48 > 0:25:52and it means those days that we're equally as good as each other,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55he's more likely to edge it cos he's going to expect a win.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57And hopefully it's something that I've been able to change
0:25:57 > 0:26:00in the last few years, is being able to expect to beat Alistair.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03I mean, I'll maybe not expect to,
0:26:03 > 0:26:07but not think of it as completely crazy if I do.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10I think Jonny obviously aims to, um,
0:26:10 > 0:26:14to be the main man in world triathlon.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18It would be a major achievement, not just because his brother
0:26:18 > 0:26:22is his brother, but because Alistair is the best there has ever been.
0:26:22 > 0:26:24COMMENTATOR: 'He's coming home, he knows he's got it now,
0:26:24 > 0:26:27'it has been an absolutely fabulous performance.'
0:26:27 > 0:26:31'Alistair Brownlee is the Olympic triathlon champion!'
0:26:31 > 0:26:35No male triathlete has ever retained their Olympic title, have they?
0:26:35 > 0:26:37So, you could be the first.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40And to have won two Olympic golds, for you, would just eliminate all
0:26:40 > 0:26:43the World Championships in between, they'd be by the by, would they?
0:26:43 > 0:26:44Yeah, absolutely.
0:26:44 > 0:26:49I think, um, the one day in August this year makes the other
0:26:49 > 0:26:53four years, um, a bit irrelevant, really.
0:26:53 > 0:26:58That said, if Gomez wins it, then it becomes very relevant, doesn't it?
0:26:58 > 0:27:02And you still fancy yourself as the best one-off racer, do you?
0:27:02 > 0:27:04I like to think I'm still the best one-off racer,
0:27:04 > 0:27:07um, but, yeah,
0:27:07 > 0:27:10I'm not sure I've proved it or it's been tested in the last year or so.
0:27:10 > 0:27:12But I think you've got to tell yourself that,
0:27:12 > 0:27:16and, you know, I think if I can be in the shape
0:27:16 > 0:27:17that I was in London, I think
0:27:17 > 0:27:19I can be in position to win any kind of triathlon,
0:27:19 > 0:27:22and I'd like to think I'd be better than that,
0:27:22 > 0:27:25so, you've just got to keep telling yourself that and train towards it.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28I think everybody needs to recognise that we're not just
0:27:28 > 0:27:31talking about a couple of brothers from next door, we're talking about
0:27:31 > 0:27:35the best triathletes there have ever been in the history of the sport.
0:27:38 > 0:27:40Someone close to both of you told me once
0:27:40 > 0:27:42that when the two of you have finished with triathlon,
0:27:42 > 0:27:45one of you will be successful and one of you will be happy.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47Which one do you think you were?
0:27:47 > 0:27:50I think people would probably say that, um, I'd be successful,
0:27:50 > 0:27:53because people would think that, like, I'd be driven
0:27:53 > 0:27:54and I'd want to do something else.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58If you ask him this question, he thinks he might be a history teacher
0:27:58 > 0:28:01somewhere, but he'd be a useless teacher, I can't see him doing that!
0:28:01 > 0:28:03I think I'd be the happy one.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06I'll do what I want to do, whether it is teaching or still
0:28:06 > 0:28:08involved in sport, and that'll keep me happy.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12I can't see him not been involved in sport at some level, but I could see
0:28:12 > 0:28:16that being coaching kids, you know, being on a track on a Tuesday night.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19He really likes the idea that he's going to be able to make
0:28:19 > 0:28:22lots of money, um, in stocks and shares or something.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24Whether that leads to financial gain
0:28:24 > 0:28:26or unhappiness or whatever, I don't know.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28But he'll try his best at it.
0:28:28 > 0:28:29Would you invest in him?
0:28:29 > 0:28:31If he puts his own money in, I'd go with him.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33But I'd only ever copy his investment,
0:28:33 > 0:28:36so, I wouldn't let him do my money on his own.
0:28:36 > 0:28:39Some days, I wake up and think, actually,
0:28:39 > 0:28:41I'd love to do something else, you know,
0:28:41 > 0:28:44something in business or a completely different career,
0:28:44 > 0:28:46and prove that I could be successful at something else.
0:28:46 > 0:28:48Other days, I wake up and think, "Nah!"
0:28:48 > 0:28:52I could live a nice life where I ride my bike to a cafe every day
0:28:52 > 0:28:55and not worry too much. So, who knows?