Gold for Tim Hellwig and the German triathlon team!
On Monday morning (5 August 2024), Tim Hellwig and the German triathlon relay secured a gold medal at the Paris Olympics with an impressive race. The entire quartet put in an exceptional performance to emerge victorious amid strong competition in the mixed relay.
As with the individual competitions, the final days before the mixed event saw the pressing question arise of whether the murky waters of the Seine would be clean enough to avoid posing a health risk to the athletes during the swim. After the two planned training sessions beforehand were both cancelled, the green light was finally given late on Sunday evening.
Tim Hellwig was feeling positive before the start, as he noted after their win:
The team had a good energy, it was clear right from the early morning. We brought that anticipation with us to the starting line perfectly.
Early in the morning, at 8 a.m., the first athletes from a total of 15 countries jumped into the water below the Pont Alexandre III in front of thousands of fans to compete for the sought-after medals.
Tim Hellwig was fully in action as the starting swimmer, working alongside Lisa Tertsch, Lasse Lührs and Laura Lindemann to compete for a podium finish for Germany. The quartet each had to complete a 300-metre swim, 7-kilometre cycle and 1.8-kilometre run in the super sprint distance through the French capital.
Hellwig put in a tactically smart swimming performance by placing himself directly behind the French favourite and exiting the water in third. During the flat cycle section, the 25-year-old and the other members of the chasing group quickly closed the gap on the leader. After changing into running shoes, Hellwig was not at all far behind the leading Swiss competitor Max Studer. Together with Great Britain’s individual gold medal winner Alex Yee, the trio were able to open up a bit of a lead. Yee amped up the speed and pulled clear, but Hellwig showed exceptional form, overtook Studer and handed over to Tertsch just three seconds behind. This impressive performance by the Saarland native as the starting runner laid the foundations for the team’s subsequent triumph.
Tim Hellwig’s exclusive interview before Paris
Tim Hellwig’s big dream of winning Olympic gold has now become a reality. But this success did not come about by accident. We visited the triathlete at his last training camp before Paris to discuss his preparations.
After the French favourites were knocked out of the running by a fall, an exciting fight with various changes of lead developed between Germany and Great Britain, joined by the Americans in the final round. Final starter Lindemann ultimately secured the win for Germany in a close, exciting final, just one second ahead of their competitors.
The German mixed relay team finished the competition after 1:25.39 hours as the winners ahead of the USA and Great Britain.
The German quartet have thus rounded off world championship titles in the last two years by clinching the Olympics. Paris was only the second time that this discipline has featured on the programme. After 16 years, Germany once again have a gold medal in the triathlon. Germany’s only previous medals came from Jan Frodeno with his 2008 triumph in Beijing, and Stephan Vuckovic with his silver in 2000.
Tim Hellwig appeared overjoyed after the race and said in his ZDF interview: ‘It was very hard, it’s incredible’. Hellwig added that he was feeling ‘all the happy feelings at once’:
a phenomenal day, we are all on top of the world.
The HYLO® Sports family would like to congratulate Tim Hellwig and the whole team for this exceptional achievement. Enjoy your well-earned moment of triumph!