Montreal Highlights Triathlon: World Series

Welcome to this afternoon 's coverage of the latest round of the

2017 world triathlon series which has been taking place this weekend

in Montreal. Over the course of the next 90 minutes we will bring the

extended highlights of the men and women from Canada. We have Jonny

Brownlee coming up later on in the men's race, meanwhile back you're

watching the race with us is another familiar face. The world under 23

champion. The champion of the world for 2013.

It is first in Madrid on one of the hardest courses there is. A

sensational race for Non Stanford. Thank you for joining us, great to

have you back, you explained you had injury problems this season so how

is the rehab going? I had issues with my Achilles and rehab is taking

a bit longer than anticipated, I hope to be back in time for the

World Series in Stockholm but it's looking more likely it will be

Nottingham. We are looking forward to watching the races and getting

your thoughts but before we do that lets get our bearings for the

series. Six races down, three to go, after Saint is wins for Javier

Gomez, the 2017 series has been about two people, defending

champion's Mario Mola and Flora Duffy. Both are undefeated in the

past four World Series races they have taken part in. But it's not

game over, yet. The remaining races, Montreal, Stockholm at the end of

August and the grand final in Rotterdam will all be on tricky

Olympic distance courses. Montreal and Rotterdam are unknown quantities

for most of those taking part while Stockholm is known as one of the

most gruelling triathlon is in the series. Come the end of the season

one thing will be certain, whoever is crowned 2017 world champion will

have earned it. Flora Duffy has been invincible hasn't she? She really

has, came out at the start of the season in Yokohama after having a

break with an injury and has been dominant ever since. She has seemed

pretty unstoppable and it's put a cast of fear over the rest of the

competition who are elevating her above which is capable of. It's a

shame to watch her get so far away from the field but she is really

strong and I think it will take something special to overturn it

this season. What do you think the girls could or should be doing to

get close to her? It is difficult, it's going to take somebody to beat

Flora to eliminate the psychological advantage to see seems to have.

There is no way she should have been riding away from the likes of

Kirsten Kasper in Hamburg this year. If somebody can combat that in

Montreal this weekend the rest of the field can gain confidence. It is

that they factor isn't it? Absolutely. There is that Flora fear

factor at the moment. She is good but I think the other girls should

have more confidence and be more brave and go with her. In the year

that Gwen Jorgensen is out having a baby, you could be up there but you

are injured, it must be deeply frustrating to watch Flora Duffy

dominating the way she is when you know you could be challenging her.

It is always frustrating but particularly this year there was an

opportunity for us to go out and perform and have a crack at that

world title with Gwen missing. Let's take a look at the rankings.

For the first time in 2017 Flora Duffy tops the women's rankings.

Katie Zaferes third-place finish in Edmonton since dropped to second. A

strong performance from Ashleigh Gentle this weekend could see her

leapfrog Kirsten Kasper into the podium positions. Kirsten Kasper

cannot climb above her current position.

Slightly smaller women's line-up this weekend, no British

participants sadly, you said you will be back for Nottingham for the

British triathlon next relay couple which is exciting but what can you

tell us about Jodie Stimpson and Vicky Holland? Jodie's rehab is

going really well and looks to be back on course for coming back to

Stockholm, Vicky we are not sure but hopefully by the end of the season

we will see her out there. Looking forward to seeing them, it will be

exciting to watch, back to the race this weekend, Ashleigh Gentle an

athlete I have looked out over the years and thought she has loads of

talent but her swimming has let her down, coming into the race this

weekend she has a real chance if she has a good swim and makes a break on

the bike to get herself into the top three in the rankings. Definitely,

she has been knocking on the door of winning a world seizing race, like

you say her swimming has let her down but with a smaller field it

depends what happens, if it stays together she has a real opportunity

to go out there and get her first World Series win. And as a strong

biker it's a good course for her. You know she will be working hard

behind you to try to bridge back up to the front group. With the course

being a bit more technical and a few hells I think it will suit her.

Taylor Knibb, what a race in Edmonton last weekend. She is the

current world junior champion at just 19 years of age and getting on

the podium last weekend made her the youngest ever athlete on a world

triathlon series podium, was that a surprise? She is definitely a

prospect, sort of surprised to see her do so well but if you look at

her past results she has been biking with Flora in the past and that

Montreal in the World Cup event they had over this same course she rode

with Flora and had a break with her there. You have to remember she is a

world junior champion so she has the pedigree to go on and be a fantastic

athlete. Last weekend Edmonton was a sprint but this weekend it's a full

distance which will affect her and she is still young. Yes I think the

longer distance will affect her a lot, I think she will be more tired

when she gets off the bike and 10K is a long way to run especially when

you're are only 19 and she would have done that many Olympic distance

races yet. I would be surprised to see a podium unless it's a big

breakaway but she will definitely be up there which is exciting for her

future and the future for America. Let's see what happened in the

women's race. COMMENTATOR: Two collapse in the

port then they pick up their bikes for nine laps of 4.5 kilometres. The

bike a combination of climbs and some big turns, three technical

turns around the course. And when they hang up their bikes they then

have a 10,000 metre run to conclude. For laps of 2.5 kilometres.

Olympic distance racing here in round seven of the 2017 world

triathlon series in Montreal in Canada. This is the start list.

Kirsten Kasper happy to be racing here as it is where her father is

from. Ashleigh Gentle was a little sick on arrival but we believe she

will start. There are no British athletes racing

in the women's competition. 30 elite athletes lining up on the pontoon.

And they are underway. Two laps. The second lap 630 metres. This course,

Non Stanford, is a bit complicated because its eggs and zags, how much

time have the athletes had to prepare, to rehearse with the

requirements of this unique course? The athletes will have had access to

it yesterday. Don't think they would have been allowed to get in the

water any other time, before the race you have an hour you can warm

up on the course and familiarise yourself with it if you need to so

they will have done it once or twice and they will have been to a

briefing where they were talked through the course so they will know

what they are doing and where they are going. Approaching the three

turning boys, they will go anticlockwise around and then back

to complete the longer part of the swim, a long lap and then a short

lap. The pace at the front pretty fast, no chop in the water, there

was a bit of wind elder in the week but it's quite calm today. I know

they are being quite strict on turning in the swimming because

there have been incidents, what do you know about how the rules are

being strengthened? They have always said that swimming behaviour will be

monitored but they have rarely acted upon that, order has rarely been

action taken. As you say that somebody's hand on somebody's head.

That was the Belgian athlete taking a bit of a battering. They are

getting more strict. Two Hungarian athletes recently disqualified at

the World Cup for poor behaviour and I think it's important because we

don't want to encourage poor sportsmanship and it can you really

rough in there. I think the grey area comes when it's deciding if it

is intentional or unintentional contact, there are always being

unintentional contact when you have this many people swimming together

in a small area. Zaferes at the front who started at the opposite

end of the pontoon to Flora Duffy, she is leading them through just

ahead of number ten, Takahashi from Japan. The strategy going to the

opposite end of the pontoon from Flora Duffy seems to have paid off

for Zaferes as she is first to emerge from the turn. We have

another look at the start with Flora Duffy on the extreme right of that

group and at the other end was Katie Zaferes, Zaferes emerging first

after the turn which involved as usual a bit of rough and tumble.

Zaferes we know can be near the front coming out of the water, last

week she had a bit of a problem trying to stay with Flora Duffy as

they left P1, what did you make of that, unable to go with Duffy? I was

surprised, I would like to hope they were not paying enough attention and

Flora Duffy is not that so much stronger she can ride away in the

first hundred metres of the race. Noticed Katie was taking her time

getting into her shoes, fiddling with them, when she should have just

got on with the race. I think Flora took advantage of that and jumped

ahead. At the end of the first lap after ten and a half minutes, just

over ten and a half minute with a shorter second lap to follow we will

get a check on exactly who has done what in the first half of the

swimming. It is Katie Zaferes emerging first guided along the

pontoon to dive back in. Taylor Knibb the runner-up last

week. Huge group of 17 or 18 athletes within ten seconds of each

other. You do not often see Katie leading the swim, she is in the

front group but does not always lead out. Missing the likes of Lucy Hall

who is a strong summer, the Leeds farmers in World Series, I think if

she was there the swimming would be faster and it would not be a tightly

bunched. This will be I think the fifth or sixth time that Zaferes, if

she holds the lead, will be first out of the water any world triathlon

series race. Swimming slightly quicker than expected, we expected

something between 19 and 20 minutes but Zaferes getting it done in

almost exactly 18, she is up and away and the chasers arrive en masse

behind her, five seconds down. Zaferes on her way up towards

transition. Of the world leader Flora Duffy also

chasing her towards where the bikes are positioned. Joanna Brown of

Canada is on her way up. They have to get transition right. We saw a

problem for Zaferes in Edmonton. She has maintained a slight lead over

the chasers. Zaferes will hope to get away and perhaps stay with Duffy

in the early stages of the 40 kilometres bike. Into transition

now. Transition is where you can sometimes see splits. The girls have

possibly redlined to make the pack will find it harder to transition.

They will be tired and could lose places. It is critical, transition.

You need to be on the bike as quick and fresh as you can be. Duffy gets

away. Katie Zaferes's lead has already been wiped out. Away they

go, hoping to get involved with the front pack and we will hopefully see

shortly how Zaferes deals with the feet and shoes on the bike in the

early stages. The road surface has dried quickly in the August sunshine

and now they sort themselves out and they are off and running on lap one.

There are mixed reports on how tough the courses. Andrea Hewitt said it

was tough and she struggled to ride her Boris bike up the hill. Other

athletes have said it is not too bad. Zaferes has a couple of

seconds' lead. And then the group that contains Flora Duffy. They are

reasonably close. Do we expect a large group of maybe 25 to form

quickly as they come passed in front of the beautiful City Hall? I think

it will come together. You can see everyone capturing and bunching.

Whether Flora decides to launch an attack. Knibb was just off the back

but judging by last week's performance, I think we could see

her make the group easily. Who is at the front? One of the Americans,

again. I think it is Knibb, runner-up in Edmonton. A strong

cyclist, the 19-year-old finished second behind Duffy in Edmonton

seven days ago. The end of lap one, you know what has happened, I think

the groups have come together. I think they have. This seems to be

the front group. Knibb has helped the bridge up and it is a big group

now. Duffy taking the wide turn and the group of nine expands

significantly. We will get a list of who is in the lead group. Knibb,

Kaspar, Joanna Brown from the host nation. Gillian Backhouse and

Zaferes first out of the water. Gentle. Rachel Klamer. Strong

swimmers like Carolina Routier also there. A total of 19 triathletes

together at the front of the field. And then a gap around 30 seconds to

the next group of six. This is where the race is being controlled. A huge

group of 19 who have merged. The early breakaway lead group and the

chase pack. That could be why Flora Duffy dropped back. She must've seen

over her shoulder the chase group closing fast and knew there was no

way to avoid it. That is true. Especially if she could see Knibb,

now her training partner, that she was closing down. Maybe she was

waiting for her. They might have an agreement to work together to

control the race. It will be interesting to see if they have

anything planned and they attack. The lead group has been whittled

down from 19 to 13. Taylor Knibb was the runner-up in Edmonton. Duffy,

the world leader. And then the Swiss. Annen. Strangely clear of the

workload of the front. She seems to have been spending most of the bike

in the middle of the pack. It is unusual for Flora, especially with

recent form. Maybe she is holding back for an attack. You would have

to be careful of watching what Flora is doing. At the end of the third

lap, they do this sort of ride over the cobbles. Things get bumpy before

they make the 180 turn and Flora Duffy has decided to make a move

through the field. She wants to be one of the first to cross the line.

The gap was 36 seconds the last time we had a check on the timing system.

Duffy and Brown. Kaspar and Annen. Gentle the first of the Australians.

That is the front group of 13. They are on their way. They could be sure

with the chasing group heading in the opposite direction. As soon as

Flora has hit the front through the technical section of transition, the

group has stretched out. It was Katie Zaferes who lost the wheel was

fighting her way back to the group. As soon as Flora has hit the front

there has been an injection of pace and people are really hurting.

I think Paula Findlay is leading the chase group. There are some really

good cyclists in there. Losing time every lap. Significant time lost. It

has gone from 36 seconds to 59 seconds. 36 seconds at the end of

lap two and 59 seconds the gap between leaders and chasers at the

conclusion of the third lap. The group of 13 at the front, whatever

strategy is being employed and it looks like Flora Duffy is dictating

terms, it is working, because their leaders strengthening lap on lap.

Annen of Switzerland seems to be the next casualty. She is struggling on

the climb. She started the race well but now has to watch as they go off

into the distance. Does she have a technical problem? She is looking

down and die and surprised to see her dropped from the group. Maybe

she is having issues with gears. We have only had two different winners

so far, Hewitt, one of the first -- she won the first two. Duffy the

next four. Only three of this group have won race alongside them. Katie

Zaferes has been on the top step of the podium. There is obviously more

playing on this race than the actual race victory. Really starting to

look at the series overall. These girls will be bearing that in mind.

All that Flora needs to do is finish in the top 13 to maintain her lead

in the series but Ashley Gentle, currently sitting in fourth, she

could move up to the top of the rankings. Ashley is one of the

strongest runners in her today. If she wins, she could put herself in

strong contention for the overall series. As they prepare for the end

of the final lap. How far out do you start thinking about your feet and

shoes and preparation? It depends on the course. If there is a technical

bit coming into transition, you often see athletes getting their

feet out earlier, so they go into the technical section with their

feet on top of their shoes, so they are not trying to negotiate corners

whilst taking their feet out. If it is a long straight run into

transition, people often do it last minute. Every athlete is different

and I think some athletes sometimes forget to get them out! Approaching

the second transition. This is where the serious part of this race

begins. They need to be quick and clean and stay out of trouble on the

arrival at transition. An unusual dismount to have to push the bikes

around the 180 degrees turn before they get on the carpet. That is

unique really, I have not seen that before. They arrive. The equipment

has to be in the right place. That did not go to plan for Rachel

Klamer. Flora Duffy is not the quickest in and out of transition

and has too returned to her bike to make sure it is upright and that was

not according to instructions for Flora Duffy. Not as neat and tidy as

she would have liked. It is Yuko Takahashi first to strike followed

by Kaspar and Hewitt and then the dangerous Ashleigh Gentle. And then

the Canadian, Joanna Brown, and then Flora Duffy. You can see Taylor

Knibb coming out of transition last. I think she might find the 10K run

tough. She has had brilliant results as a junior over sprint distance,

but she is not the fastest runner in the field and I think the 40 K bike

might have taken a toll on her legs today and I would not expect her to

fight for podium position today. Four laps of 2.5 kilometres in total

to take them to the full distance of ten kilometres, using some of the

same streets that were involved on the bike. It is a truncated loop.

Past the feeding station and off they go. It looks like Ashleigh

Gentle is taking it on at the front. That Hill was tough they just ran

up. That is where a lot of girls were dropped on the bike. To run up

is a different story again, that is tougher to negotiate it. You do not

see many hilly courses World Series races. The run is often flat.

Stockholm has a hill, but most of the others are a flat run and I

think that will change the outcome of the race. It will suit stronger

athletes. Leeds is a tough run course which suits the stronger

runners. 26-year-old Ashleigh Gentle from Australia looking to strike

early in the first lap of the run. Second place, just behind her, Flora

Duffy, who had I her standards not the best transition, and she has

made up for it and is trying to get on the shoulder of the Australian.

From Brisbane, Australia, Ashleigh Gentle leads the world triathlon

series in Montreal. About four, yes, four seconds confirmed by the

graphic, the distance between Gentle and then Duffy, Kaspar and Hewitt,

who are joint second right now. Ashleigh did not race in Edmonton

last weekend and I think that will pay off. She will be fresher than a

lot of the other athletes who raced, including Flora Duffy, Katie

Zaferes, Kaspar, Rachel Klamer. A lot of the front group raced in

Edmonton and Ashleigh didn't. She is striding away right now. Flora Duffy

moving clear. From Hewitt and Kaspar. Hewitt recovered a bit of

ground. She got on the shoulder of Duffy and then Duffy made a surge

forward. Now, is Hewitt responding? It looks like good work from the New

Zealander. A tough part of the course. This is where they were out

of their saddles and pushing hard on their bikes, and now running uphill.

I think this hell will play a big part today. I think it -- this hill

will play a part and it is where you will see splits happening. 31 world

triathlon series starts for Ashleigh Gentle and five podium places. Will

today be the day when she finally gets her first victory? She is

halfway through the run stage, almost, after one hour and 40

minutes and 50 seconds. Flora Duffy in second position with four wins

this season. Hewitt in third with two Wins this season. A little

further behind, Kersten Kasper. She has had a consistent campaign so

far. Ashleigh Gentle makes the turn and

will see the two signal buying she has two laps left to run. It's

difficult to tell if ground is being made back-up on Flora No danger of

missing the count like Jacob Birtwhistle did last time out, a

huge sign saying two laps to go. Andrea Hewitt is not out of silver

medal position here. Flora Duffy 21 seconds behind, Andrea Hewitt a

further nine seconds back. It looks really windy out there today which

is making life even more difficult on this tough running course, Flora

looks like she usually pushing and working hard winners Andrea looks

quite comfortable so we could see that coming down. This will be a new

experience for Ashleigh she is normally coming from further down

the field when she gets off the bike and is having to run her way through

athletes, to lead from the outset is a different experience and it's a

learning curve and it will give her a lot of confidence going forward

that she knows what to do in the situation. It's fantastic to see her

leading from the start of a run rather than having to chase her way

up. That winning margin just over a lap to go, the advantage Ashleigh

Gentle has opened up over Flora Duffy is a massive 37 seconds. That

is quite dominant running, it's really quite impressive. Further

down the road you can see a potential battle shaping up for

fourth place between Kirsten Kasper who is of Canadian Heritage bid

races for the United States, and Joanna Brown, who is racing in the

red of Canada. I impressed have you been with this performance from

Ashleigh Gentle in terms of timing and tactics and determination?

Incredibly impressed, I was really impressed with her swimming,

Ashleigh Gentle is not known for her strong swimming, she is often quite

far down. But she had a brilliant swim, got herself into the front

group, and worked hard on the bike, did not shy away, did not hide away.

She's gone out into the run and dominated from the start. Showing

what pure class she is and I really am impressed. She has done it from

the front and an impressive way to win race. Good swim and two very

tidy transitions for the Australian. With about a hundred metres to go

she knows that Duffy is far enough removed, she glanced over her

shoulder to double check but now can potentially start enjoying the last

few moments of this triathlon which will be her first as champion. Lots

of warm applause for Ashleigh Gentle. She is double and triple

checking that Duffy is not coming for a late surge, taking off the

sunglasses and enjoying the moment now. I don't think she can quite

believe it, she keeps checking back to see if Flora is coming but she's

obviously got this and needs to enjoy the moment. She wins in

Montreal, that delay for Ashleigh Gentle for the first time in her

career! She will stand on the top step of the world triathlon series

podium, one hour 59 minutes and four seconds for a winning time. Duffy,

the defending world champion will come home the second, four straight

victories and the runners-up spot for Flora Duffy, her astonishing

seasons continues. And another podium place for the unstoppable

Andrea Hewitt, the oldest competitor in the contest today will be on the

podium, finishing third, after two victories at the start of the season

she is back on the podium. Ashleigh Gentle very emotional and I am not

surprised to see that, I thought she would be, it means a lot to her,

it's been a long time coming. And fourth place will go to the

Canadian, a battle unfolding further down the track, it's been won by

Joanna Brown. She has taken fourth place, stolen it from Kirsten

Kasper, the Canadian finishes fourth, Joanna Brown in the top

five, Kirsten Kasper with a huge hug for her training partner, they had a

ding-dong battle at the conclusion of the

five second-place finishes, how sweet to finally win one? I am

sorry. It is OK, I know it is emotional. To be honest I've flew

into Montreal and got pretty sick and only decided to race this

morning. But it paid off. I have to thank my coach Jamie Turner, he

installed some things in my mind going into this race to focus on

little things, doing them right rather than the result and drew a

lot of inspiration from Gwen as well so I have those people to thank, I

am in shock, it has taken six years and a lot of ups and downs, five

second-place ease and finally I win, I am so happy. I am very happy with

second today, it was a tough race out there, not quite feeling the

same on the bike, but worked what I had and it was going to come down

for a running race, I was hoping for more I did the best I could and I

happy for Ashleigh I knew it would come Sunday so I am glad it is

today. How do you see the race for the World Championship now, one race

left and then the grand final? Flora is still deciding if she will come

to Stockholm but it's going to down to Rotterdam because you get one and

a half times the points so it's close and exciting.

Unmade invective for Ashleigh Gentle from Australia after so many near

misses, a handful of podium places, she finally got the one she wanted.

Victory in Montreal and you could tell in her postrace interview how

much it meant to her. STUDIO: What a race and so deserved, waited so long

for this day, you must be pleased? Definitely, it's been a long time

coming and you could see how much it meant, I think it was the 32nd time

she had started a race so to finally get the victory is fantastic. She is

an exciting talent, she's been a good runner but always a bit down on

the swimming so for her to step up and get the gold is amazing. Her

swimming was impressive, we are used to seeing how come out about a

minute down and this time it was only 20 seconds, so with improved

swimming she can be a real threat to Flora Duffy. Definitely, she can be

a threat to everybody and when Gwen comes back she can be a threat to

her as well, she is coached by Jamie Turner who also coaches Gwen

Jorgensen so maybe this is why we are seeing these big improvements?

Talking about Flora Duffy, it was an interesting day, not the Flora Duffy

we've seen in the last few races, to see her sitting on the bike and not

do any work is out of character. Definitely, she did allude to the

fact she was not feeling herself, and if you can still get silver when

you are feeling a bit off that is really impressive. She still had a

very good race, we were expecting her to break off the front and I

think a lot of the girls in the group were expecting that as well.

Over the last lap especially everyone was sitting up and waiting

for her to do something but it never materialised. I think that's good

for the series going forward, I think it will give the girls more

confidence they can ride with Flora, even if she was a bit tired it shows

she can be vulnerable and hopefully going forward she would have the

fear factor we talked about. But she has made an improvement on her run,

finishing 20 seconds down on Ashleigh Gentle is impressive. It

is, Flora has been working on her running in the past 12-18 months.

She was faster than Gwen which is really impressive, they think of

Flora is a fantastic swimmer and biker but she's also one of the

fastest runners in the field now as well. Looking ahead to the

Commonwealth Games gold course what was interesting about the results,

the top four athletes from the Commonwealth. Impressive to see so

many Commonwealth athletes up there, there are normally some Americans

breaking it up. It's going to be exciting especially as it's a

shorter distance of the sprint and it will give us Brits something to

think about. Absolutely, but before that we have this to look forward

to. COMMENTATOR: Steve Crowley taking

gold in his first race for Great Britain.

Next up for the British team is the world parrot triathlon Championships

taking place in Rotterdam on Friday 15th September.

We will be sure to keep you updated on their progress at the World

Championships, somebody however who we will not be seen in Rotterdam or

anywhere else this season is Alistair Brownlee. The double

Olympic champion had hip surgery on Saturday after suffering an acute

flare-up of a long-standing problem in training. The Sergei victory

points to an end his main aim for the season which was to win the

world half Ironman title but in doing so he says he hopes it will

enable him to continue doing what he loves for many years to come. It

seems as though these problems have come from him moving up distance. It

is difficult when you change events and go longer in triathlon, a lot of

things come into play, you have to change training and one of the key

things is you are now on it time trial bike so your position changes

massively and that can have biomechanical effect on everything

from your cycling to your running. I think that is where we are seeing

Alistair have problems. I think after he has the operation he will

be firing on all solders. In the meantime Jonny Brownlee seem to be

over his problems when he returned to racing last week in Edmonton and

finished fourth, this is what he has said since. Jonathan Brownlee comes

home with fourth position. Please to be back on the start line and back

racing but I don't go... I thought I was fit, I had had the illness

before but I thought I was fitter than that so I came out the race

disappointed and wanted more. It was a strange race, Mario and Richard

having good swims and it meant we did not have any engines on the bike

and lacking Alistair it meant we didn't have a breakaway and I was

disappointed with that because I thought seeing the course there

would definitely be a breakaway. Hopefully having a sprint distance

race will improve and hopefully I have recovered well between the

races as that is a big factor, it's unusual to race two weekends in a

row. I would like to think I do as much training as everyone else and

recover as well as everyone else so hopefully I will be in better form.

The courses in the centre of Montreal, the swim is interesting,

it's good for swimmers because it is longer straights and one and a half

laps means less corners which should help the breakaway. The bikes taken

some nice sites of Montreal and quite few hills, then the run goes

over a little bit hill and if we get motivated a group we can hopefully

get a breakaway and I can have a good race. It was not a bad race

from Johnny but it was not him at his best.

It wasn't his best but fourth is a solid results. Mario Mola has been

impressive all-round. He has dominated. Absolutely. Mola is an

all-round triathlete. Yes, he does not always get the swim right but we

are seeing that improving and he is more consistent than he has been in

his swim, which is worrying for the rest of the field. The last four

races and wins have put him in pole position. Let's take a look at the

rankings. Mola has opened up a sizeable lead. Tom Bishop was fourth

going into Edmonton but he has chosen altitude training over

competing in Canada. Missing those races means he slips to seven. He

will be back racing in Stockholm. Jonny Brownlee's fourth in Edmonton

was enough to get him into the top ten and he will hope to climb a

couple of places after this race. Non Stanford has been looking at who

else is in action. This is her guide. Gomez will be relieved to be

back racing on a course that plays to his strengths. The Spaniard going

about his business over the sprint in Hamburg and Edmonton finishing

fifth and six. Over Olympic distance the five-time world champion will be

keen to show he has still got what he takes. Richard Murray has

experimented with longer distance triathlon is this year which might

be why he has not had the speed to challenge in Edmonton. A good swim

in Montreal and he might push further up the podium. After

launching his sprint finish to early in Edmonton, Jacob Birtwistle will

be counting carefully this time. He has proven himself at sprint level

becoming part of Mola's spring group. Ryan Sissons is a late

Bloomer, making his first World Series podium at the age of 29 in

Hamburg. He was speaking to show that is no fluke with a strong

showing in Montreal. Keep an eye out for Raphael Montoya, who beat Jacob

Birtwistle to be junior champion in 2014 and his results at elite level

have improved, winning silver at the European Championships and he had a

World Series best fifth-place finish in Edmonton. Having seen the women's

race, what will be key in the men's race? I see the men's race unfolding

differently. The women's swing did not break up but with the lights of

Richard Varga, the men's race might string out more. The bikes are

interesting with the boys more aggressive and it means a chance of

the front pack not getting caught as in the women's race. The run course

is tough. You saw how tired the women were and it will favour the

likes of Mario Mola. Gomez is racing this weekend. A fantastic race in

Abu Dhabi, which he won and now racing over sprint distance in the

last races. He does not like the sprint distance race so I am

interested to see how he impacts on the race this weekend. Javier

traditionally performs better over Olympic distance and it depends on

where he comes out in the swim, if he is in the front group, good

engine to keep the bike away. If he comes out in the second group, there

is a good engine driving them back up to the front group. Where he

comes out will affect the outcome. We can chat about the British

athletes. Jonny Brownlee is racing. Grant Sheldon and Gordon Benson,

Grant was disappointed with Edmonton but it was a solid results for an

athlete that has had injury problems. Also a tougher field this

year. I do not think he will be disappointed with ten. He had a

brilliant performance in Edmonton. Grant had a shocker and got lapped

out in Leeds and to come back from that disappointment and finished

tenth is fantastic. Gordon Benson, will the course suit him? It will in

part. He is a powerful athlete and a long climate Edmonton but not favour

him. The climbs here are sharper and shorter so he will cope better. His

powerful nature will count against him and he might struggle on the run

but I would not be surprised to see him there at the end of the bike. We

can hand you over to Matt Chilton and eventually Non Stanford. This is

the starting list. Jacob Birtwistle had a

miscalculation of laps last weekend in Edmonton but he could be due a

win. Blummenfelt won the World Cup here one year ago. The British

triathletes, the other two, Gordon Benson with 25 and Grant Sheldon

with 27. Montreal in Canada, it is hosting round seven of the 2017

world triathlon series. And away they go. Spectacular start. Cheering

from the several hundred spectators who have gathered port side to watch

the start of the race and already one or two being pushed out of

position as the fast starters force their way to the front. On the left

of the line, you can see a clear figure in front, Richard Varga. He

started alongside Jonny Brownlee and Mario Mola. The left-hand side as we

look down. And that is the familiar swim specialist stroke of Richard

Varga. A fine start. It looks like Jonny Brownlee got straight on

Richard Varga's feet, moving across as they dived in and hopefully he

will hope to those feet to the first buoy. Mario Mola, whether he can

hold that, we will have to wait and see. Richard is stretching it out

already and you can see the right-hand side, I think he has a

massive advantage on the left side of the party. I'm sure that is

Jonathan Brownlee in second. He is starting to lose Richard's feet.

Richard has obviously got the pace. Notables who went left on the

pontoon included Gomez. Javier Gomez, Birtwistle, strong athletes.

They want to get rid of them in the swim. It will be significant where

Javier Gomez comes out and if he comes out in the front group he is a

fantastic engine to help chase and if he comes out the chase group, he

could help drive the chase group to the front. For Jonny Brownlee it is

important where Javier comes out is the swim. I think Jonny Brownlee has

taken the lead from Richard Varga. I am not sure if they have an

agreement to lead to different portions of the race so that Richard

does not have the responsibility of leading it all, to give him a break

so hopefully he can push on in the latter stages and force it even

more. They might have thought about it and has strategy going in. Jonny

Brownlee said after his race in Edmonton last weekend when he

finished fourth, he said, I have lacked race fitness and sharpness.

You cannot train that, you need to be in a race. Hopefully having a

sprint race under my belt will move things on and I have recovered well.

He said it was unusual to have two races on successive weekends and

hopes his recovery will have gone well, as he allows Richard Varga to

come back in contention. They chopping and changing of the lead.

Jonny Brownlee leading briefly and then Richard Varga had a burst of

acceleration, moving back into first position. The end of lap one and,

for the 31st time in his career and Richard Varga the first man out of

the water in this competition. In he goes. With his former training

partner Jonny Brownlee just behind. Then Ben Kanute. Aaron Royale in

good shape. Pierre le Coq. Dominic Onyx has gone well. Gomez in 12th.

Still no sign of some of the leading contenders and no sign of the other

two British triathletes, Benson and Sheldon. There is Benson coming out

of the water, 28 seconds down after the first lap of the swim. Not

surprised to see a lot of French athletes up there today. They are

notoriously good swimmers. Mola was down. Trailing after the first lap

by 36 seconds. A huge chunk. I think I saw Grant Sheldon getting in

towards the back so I think he is off the pace. But no massive brakes

yet. -- breaks. Interesting to see if

they can force a split so when they get on the bikes they can form a

group to work together. You can see that the split has happened and

there will be some trailing in backpack, which we know includes

Mario Mola, so great news for Jonny Brownlee from that perspective.

Mario Mola is a very strong runner who has posted fast ten case splits

in recent years. If Jonny Brownlee can distance himself from Mario,

that is the best case scenario. The end of the swim. Richard Varga

leading them out. He is first to climb the steps. The Slovakian swim

specialist doing what he does best, closely followed by Brownlee and Ben

Kanute. And then one of the Australians, it is Aaron Royale in

good shape. And then Seth Rider. Three Frenchmen tightly bunched.

Then a couple of Japanese and then Gomez, 16 seconds down. He is in

company with Blummenfelt and Jonas Schomburg. There we get the first

look at Gordon Benson, who comes out 31 seconds behind the leaders. The

leaders are now on their way towards their bikes. A real chance to make a

difference coming out of transition here. You have strong cyclists. Ben

Kanute flew out of transition in the mixed relay but seems to have

trouble with his helmet. If he attacks, they could cause a split.

Royale is on board and away and Gomez not far behind. Gomez hoping

to close the gap up towards Jonny Brownlee and Richard Varga. Kristian

Blummenfelt in the saddle and riding. One of the Portuguese, he

overshot his mark and had to go back. On his way now. Another one of

the British athletes coming out. That was Gordon Benson. Vincente

Hernandez is in the top ten of the standings but he has left himself

work to do to reach the gap towards the leaders, but not as much work as

the world number one, defending world champion. Mario Mola is late

into transition and will hope to find a good working party on the

bike and try to close the gap towards the leaders. They are well

strung out and Brownlee and Richard Varga and others will be deep into

lap one before this group leave transition. Ryan Sissons just coming

through, he was third in Hamburg. He is way down. Just in front of Mario

Mola. The first lap of the bike under way. Already a lot of intrigue

unfolding. We will join the leaders. Jonathan Brownlee with Richard Varga

just behind and Aaron Royale of Australia in third. His triathlon is

working out well so far. I think that is Ben Kanute trying to close

the gap and make it a quartet in front. If they attack the first lap

of the bike and cause this split, you can see the split happening

already, that would be great. They have Gomez, who was not far behind,

I think he came out of the swim 16 seconds down but he left transition

closer to them. from Johnny but it was not him at

his best. I really think Jonny is pushing the

pace, you can see him shouting at the others in the group and he will

want them to work together. He will not want to lose these athletes as

they will work harder and better as a quartet rather than him on his

own. If you can organise and motivate them it's the ideal

scenario for him. Now the conclusion of the first lap, we will get an

accurate timing as to what the gap is between the leading four and the

chasing pack who are on the same stretch of road, I think there are

three of them together, I think one of them is Javier Gomez but we will

find out shortly, certainly one of the it's bangers. It is Javier

Gomez, Kristian Blummenfelt but I did not quite pick up to the third

athlete was. We will find out, the gap is limited, it is Javier Gomez,

Kristian Blummenfelt and Seth Rider, we do not know much about him,

number 50, I think this might be one of his first ever world triathlon

series races. Those three have broken away from the main chasing

pack and that is good they have not dragged everyone up with them and

even if those pre-managed to join the front four which I think they

very well might do it might work to their advantage that there are now

seven of them able to share the workload. Seth Rider is 21 years

old, today is his world triathlon series debut and could soon be

joining the lead group as the chasing pack come through. Some

familiar names here. I think Mario Mola was within that

group as well. Tony Dodds is normally a front pack swimmer,

Russell white you often see at the front of swimming and biking as

well, so maybe the swimming was a bit more aggressive than you can

actually see and its pricing to see some of those names back there in

that third and fourth pack effectively. I think this is the

chase group because it has some of the French athletes who were near

the front of the swimming but have just missed out on getting the

breakaway. We had three French. Rafael Toloi finished fifth last

This is the lead group, numbers have grown. Jonny Brownlee, Aaron Royle,

they were with Richard Varga but that four has now become seven. They

have got some really strong riders, Kristian Blummenfelt is incredibly

powerful. He will really contribute to this breakaway, Javier Gomez

again, massive engine. He will be an asset to this front group and like

we said before, they could really change the outcome and I think it's

better for Jonny that he is there in terms of keeping Mario Mola at bay.

The leading seven right now. I am struggling to see how this

group is going to be caught, they are really strong riders, very

experienced. I think this could be a breakaway which sticks the full 40

kilometres today. Jonny Brownlee back at the front. Conditions get

slightly more lumpy underfoot as they get to the cobbles. But it is

dry. A bit of dampness around for the women's race but today it's all

dry under the wheels, the Olympics over medallist Jonathan Brownlee of

Great Britain is charging here. -- the Olympic silver-medallist. Plenty

of other riders for company, including the Norwegian Kristian

Blummenfelt who tasted success here a year ago. We will get an official

time difference between the leaders and the chasers now, Javier Gomez in

there as well. I think the chasing pack was being

joined by the third pack so the group is swelling but I feel the

margin has definitely gone up, it was 31 seconds at the end of the

first lap and I think it's growing. I think that will keep growing, need

to just keep chipping away. It's going to be closer to 45 seconds by

the time they crossed the line. 44 seconds. 44 seconds between the

leading seven and the next group of about 30. Having such a sizeable

chasing pack is not necessarily a great thing if you're trying to

close down. Often more bodies mean it's more difficult to get round

tight corners and hills mean the pack stretches out and this will

play into the hands of the front group who will work well together.

Javier Gomez taking it up, one of three men in the group who have gone

sub 30 minutes over 10,000 metres and remember this race today will

conclude with a 10K run. Gomez has run 29.02, Jonathan Brownlee 29.11.

The quality of running within this group of seven is exceptional. The

group of seven have established themselves with a gap now getting on

for a minute. In terms of distance you can get it illustrated by that

camera shot from a helicopter. They are in different parts of Montreal,

the leading group of seven and the chasers. Different suburbs right

now. How well potentially could Mario Mola do today? What is the

best case scenario for him the way things stand? Looking at the front

group I think he would do incredibly well, even if the time gap stays 62

seconds he would do incredibly well to run himself up. Javier Gomez,

Jonny Brownlee, Kristian Blummenfelt has had some really strong runs in

the past. Aaron Royle has run himself onto the podium before as

well. I think it would be very impressive if Mario Mola did that

but I don't think he has to score today in order to stay at the top of

the rankings. His result today does not necessarily matter in the

overall standings but I think he will still want to do well and

maintain his fairly perfect record. What a season it has been, winner on

the Gold Coast over sprint distance, Yokohama Olympic distance, won again

in Hamburg, and last weekend in Edmonton over the sprint distance,

but he is out of contention here the way things stand. Once again we join

the lead group, Seth Rider has stayed fixed to the back of this

group and no Jonny Brownlee goes to work, easing his way back, giving

out his instructions. In conversation with Seth Rider at the

back and the other American Ben Kanute, Jonny Brownlee takes his

place at the back of the group, had a quiet ride with Seth Rider. It'll

be interesting to know what gets exchanged, think sometimes it can be

encouraging but other times it can be frustrating with people not

contributing. But I'd be surprised if they do not actually mind if Seth

Rider stays towards the back being as he is relatively experienced and

probably an unknown entity to the rest of these athletes as well so

they might rather he stays towards the back and out of trouble and they

can allow the work to continue smoothly upfront.

Mario Mola is now putting an an obvious effort here, he has broken

away, he had Hernandez for company but has decided enough is enough, if

he's going to feature in the top places today he's got to try and get

little closer to the front of seven so Mario Mola has made a move. It

would be great to see somebody from the second pack having a go at

breaking away from the large pack and making inroads into this front

pack, it would show some bravery for sure. Keep things exciting otherwise

it will just roll around and accept fate in some regards.

180 turn up towards the timing line. The front group of seven remains the

same with three laps to go, this sign held clearly for everyone to

see and no change. The last time they crossed the line the advantage

was 62 seconds. We will wait and see if Mario Mola has managed to change

that in his favour at all. He has gone back into the pack outflanked.

-- I think. At the end of this one they will

take the bell and then things will start to develop over the last lap

of four and a half kilometres. Seems to be a bit of a break, one athlete

of the front followed by another three and then the rest of the

chasing pack so you cannot quite work out from here who it is but

definitely a Spaniard in a red suit, I wonder if that's Mario Mola?

Trying to make a move. Danish athlete. Andreas Schelling from

Denmark, 26 years old. He's gone away. Taken about seven seconds out

of the rest of the group, obviously feels if he is to have a chance of

getting up towards the top five finish to make make a break now. We

would expect the three podium places, the three medals to come

from within this group of seven who are about to conclude they 40 K ride

around the streets of Montreal. It's been fascinating, six experienced

riders, six established Rider and 120-year-old who has been along for

the ride and what RIT has had, Seth Rider.

Little stumble for Seth Rider as she grabs hold of the seat of his bike

and made his way towards transition, they have to get off their bikes and

then push them in the 180 degrees turn before they come to their

positions within tea too. Let's see how Jonny Brownlee goes, quite have

pick up the bike before he leaves transition and stand it up and get

it straight. Gomez is away already, Brownlee did not lose too much time,

just glanced over his shoulder to make sure everything was in the

right place, Kristian Blummenfelt the first man to leave, first to

arrive and first to leave. Now, Schilling comes in on his own, looks

like a smart move. He has maintained the advantage of seven or eight

seconds over the rest of the chasing group. It's a brave move from

Schilling and very smart, capitalising on an opportunity he

felt he had. For Gregor Young, relatively new athlete to the scene

it's great to see him being confident and breaking away from

experienced athletes like Mario Mola and giving himself a fighting

chance. Making their way out of transition. Let's join the leaders.

Kristian Blummenfelt in first position but being stocked steadily

by Javier Gomez and Jonny Brownlee, next down the road is Aaron Royle,

then Ben Kanute and Richard Varga. The lead about to be shared by the

story. -- by these three. Mario Mola, his record for chasing down

the deficit is 41 seconds, that was in Chicago at the grand final in

2015. So Mario Mola is going to have two beat some records today and race

his own personal standards if he is to challenge the leaders.

Javier Gomez stretching the lead slightly just before the hell.

Javier Gomez and Kristian Blummenfelt have a couple of yards

over Jonathan Brownlee as Brownlee tries to respond. This is Javier

Gomez going to work. Not a race winning breakaway by any stretch of

the imagination but it could be significant as Gomez puts his foot

down on the climb, Kristian Blummenfelt able to respond

initially, Brownlee lest capable and Gomez now has the outright lead.

This is the Javier Gomez we have seen over the years, certainly seems

to favour the Olympic distance over the sprint distance. Hasn't been

quite as dominant in sprint races the last couple of races so I think

he is far more at home over the Olympic distance and you can see him

stretching away here. Really putting daylight between him and Kristian

Blummenfelt and Jonny Brownlee. News on Mario Mola. He is only 30

seconds behind fourth placed Aaron Royle. And is about to arrive on the

shoulder Ben Kanute who was with that front group of seven. Mola has

Richard Murray not far behind. Out in front, our leader, Javier Gomez

from Spain. Halfway through the final stage of this Olympic distance

triathlon. He completes lap two with two to go after one hour, 32 minutes

and 20 seconds. Blummenfelt trails by nine seconds. You can see Jonny

Brownlee, who is not looking totally comfortable, further down the road

now. Brownlee crossing the timing line now. He is 21 seconds behind

Gomez. Aaron Royle in fourth was just passed by Mario Mola and

Richard Murray, so those two making grounds into these seven athletes

that broke off. Mola, Richard Murray and Aaron Royle, who has been

passed. Cannot stay with the two trading partners. The Spaniard and

the South African, both train under the guidance of Joel, alongside

Jacob Birtwistle, who has joined that group. Training partners.

Racing partners as they attempt to close the gap. Ryan Sissons of New

Zealand has been on the podium already. Mola and Richard Murray

going to work, hunting down the next in line. On the Hill, Gomez deep in

his third lap. Richard Murray just put in a kit. I was going to say he

and Mola have worked together well but Richard Murray has pulled away

decisively from Mola and maybe Mola is not feeling as good as we

thought. I noticed in the bike portion Richard Murray was tucked in

the pack, not doing much work. He came to the front the last couple of

laps but Mola was at the front, initiating a lot of the work for the

bike ride. Maybe Richard Murray took the smarter move and conserved

energy. Gomez begins the final lap. He takes

the bell. The gap to Blummenfelt is ticking on. Babos has got to find a

dozen seconds -- Kristian Blummenfelt has defined a dozen

seconds to win his first triathlon World Series goals. Jonny Brownlee

is facing severe danger from Richard Murray. -- gold medal. Richard

Murray closing the gap fast. He will see that now. Brownlee will see the

green of Richard Murray. Imminent danger. I do not think we considered

Richard Murray would eat away at the deficit so well. We talked about

Mola a lot. Richard Murray has had a lot of success at World Series but

the majority over sprint distance, so to see him perform well over

Olympic distance is a surprise for me. I expected more macro to do that

but Richard is a class athlete and very strong runner.

1.8 kilometres left in the race. Can Gomez cling on to claim his second

Olympic distance event of the series for 2017? I think perhaps the gold

medal is guaranteed, but the bronze medal has been lost now for Jonathan

Brownlee, as Richard Murray has taken third position out right. The

South African moves past the younger of the Brownlee brothers into bronze

medal position. Jonny is still attacking and certainly increased

his cadence and arm drive. Maybe he has left something and can draw back

on the last couple of kilometres of the run back into Richard Murray,

but Richard Murray looking strong, passing him. This is where it

happened moments ago. A glance behind. Maybe a word from Murray.

100 metres to go for Gomez. He won the opening race in March in Abu

Dhabi. Over the sprint distance. Today, he will win again, in

Montreal. The first time the city has hosted a World Series race.

Fitting that one of the greats of the sport will bring home the gold

medal. The legendary Spanish triathlete Javier Gomez will be the

master of Montreal this afternoon. His timing was impeccable. He kept

clear of Blummenfelt and Brownlee. He stayed clear of Blummenfelt and

Brownlee and he wins in Montreal in style. Gomez is the champion. One

hour, 47 minutes and 50 seconds. That is how to win an Olympic

distance triathlon. A personal best for Kristian Blummenfelt. Third in

Yokohama, taking second and the civil medal in Montreal. -- the

silver medal. It has been a brilliant run from Richard Murray.

We will have a wait before he canters home for third. Managing to

overtake Jonathan Brownlee during the fourth and final lap. Richard

Murray soaking up the atmosphere. The South African will be on the

podium once again. He is enjoying every moment of this. He crosses to

take the bronze medal in Montreal. 52 seconds behind Javier Gomez. And

then we will have a wait before the best of the British contingent

arrives now, looking weary. Fourth place in Edmonton last weekend and

fourth place again in Montreal today.

I'm not sure if you know, you have become the oldest man to win a WTF

's race, that is a compliment. I guess age is just a number? Is that

good or bad? After so many sprint races it was good to have a proper

race. Luckily I recovered from last week, where I felt a bit sick. I did

a good race today. I'm really pleased. I knew if I had a good swim

and came close to Javier there were chances I could get away and luckily

it happened. On the bike, easy pedalling, and today we were working

hard for are now on the bike, which takes out of the lake speed. If you

tell me I was on the podium today I would have said you are a liar

because the body was not responding on the bike. The swim, I felt great

but the time was not good. Super happy. On the bike, I couldn't

contribute to much. I felt cowardly on the bike! I tried to contribute a

view times but the body told me to stop. How tough was it on the bike?

You gave yourself a lot to do out of the water. I knew if I wanted to

content I had to work and try to be the closest to the front as

possible. I emptied my tank. I could not do any more. I hope to recover

and be better than it swan. He is one of the most consistent athletes,

Javier, and I strive for that myself. You can put on a long

course, a short course, and he can do it. Maybe one of the greatest. He

and Alistair are but definitely I am stoked for him. COMMENTATOR: Javier

Gomez wins in Montreal. Jonathan Brownlee was fourth last weekend and

forth again in Montreal. Mario Mola still leads the rankings. Gomez is

now second with Richard Murray in third place overall. Jonny Brownlee,

still the best place to British triathlete.

Gomez, at the age of 34 becomes the oldest man ever to win a world

triathlon series race. And it may well not be his last.

STUDIO: What a great race. Jonny got the swim and bike right but had

problems on the run. Technically he executed well and he and Richard

Fargo had a plan going into the swim and worked well, sharing the load.

-- Richard Varga. They attacked on the first lap. A group of three

managed to move up, including Gomez. Going onto the run, you felt it was

Jonny's race to lose. I thought he was a shoo-in for the podium but he

looked tired and is of history not quite right yet. And missing his

brother? Definitely. You saw in Leeds, where Alistair was their

commie lifts Jonny's game, especially on the bike where

Alistair is motivated and can draw the breakaway away. Alistair will

not be around the rest of the season and Jonny has to do it for himself,

which he has done in the into Stockholm and Rotterdam he can lift

his game. Javier Gomez, what a performance, the oldest guy racing

in the field. It was incredible. Great to see him return to form. We

had a win in Abu Dhabi in March. He has had a couple of health issues

that seems to have recovered and seeing him on the podium where he

belongs. Mola looks like he is on course, even though he did not have

a great race, to retain his title. It is definitely not over, which is

the exciting thing. We has four wins but the fifth result is lacking. If

Gomez goes to Stockholm and wins it will put him in contention for the

top step. You have a tight race towards the back end of the podium

with Richard Murray, Fernando Alarza and Jacob Birtwistle who needs five

results plus the grand final to count. He only has four to date. An

exciting weekend of racing done with in Montreal. Next we are back in

Europe for the final two races. We will see how Jodie Stimpson and the

rest of the Brits get on at close quarters. We will be live on the red

button and have interviews and highlights of both races on BBC Two

from 2:15pm on Sunday, 27. And after Stockholm, join us for live coverage

of the owned -- for the inaugural mixed relay cup. On Saturday the

16th of September, a grand final taking place in Rotterdam. We will

be on air from 12:45pm on BBC Two to say races unfold as the race to

become the 2017 world champion reaches its conclusion. Before that,

we have coverage of the world athletics Championships continuing

this week across the BBC. From Thursday, we will bring you live

coverage of the US PGA golf championship. I think you would have

to say Montreal is an exciting addition to the series. It is a

true, honest course. I look forward to being involved in the action next

year myself. Thank you for joining us and we wish you the best in

Nottingham in September. That is all. We will see you next time.

COMMENTATOR: Victory for Ashleigh Gentle!

Javier Gomez will be the master of Montreal this afternoon.

..this season, the whole game in full

It's been a knockout day in the Premier League.

The second half, Jermaine, very much...