Olympic hero Alex Yee honored with Team GB’s ‘Moment of the Games’ after ‘unforgettable’ comeback – Elite News

On By Littum

Just a day after winning a prestigious British sports award, Alex Yee‘s incredible come-from-behind charge for golden glory in the men’s triathlon in Paris has now been named Team GB’s ‘Moment of the Games’.

The award was announced at a glittering Team GB ball in central London on Thursday evening.

And given Team GB’s astonishing performance at the Olympics – they won 65 medals in total including 14 gold – it underlines the magnitude of Yee’s achievement.

He looked set for silver at best heading into the closing stages in the French capital, where New Zealand’s Hayden Wilde had managed midway through the 10km race.

But Yee somehow summoned remarkable reserves of energy to close the gap on the Kiwi and then raced past for a famous sporting triumph that once again put triathlon squarely in the spotlight on the biggest stage.

At the closing ceremony of the Games, he was given the honor of carrying the Team GB flag alongside gymnast Bryony Page.

On Wednesday, Yee was named Sports Journalists’ Association Sportsman of the Year and that, plus this latest award, especially as it came after a public vote, must surely put him in the reckoning for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) Award.

The Famous Five

A shortlist of five outstanding performances was selected for Team GB’s ‘Moment of the Games’ and the public were then asked to choose their favourite.

The five in question – all incredible – and a line or two from the official Team GB release were as follows:

Alex Yee

Alex Yee’s golden last kilometer will go down in Olympic triathlon history. Despite the majority of spectators believing the Briton was locked in silver, Yee himself had other plans.

With just a few hundred meters to go, Tokyo 2020 individual silver medalist kicked on and reeled off Hayden Wilde to take victory on the Pont de Alexandre III by six seconds in a stunning performance.

Keely Hodgkinson

When the final came, Hodgkinson was dictating the race and leading the pack but still had Commonwealth champion Mary Moraa on her shoulder coming into the back straight, a concern given the Kenyan’s penchant for a fast finish.

But there was no need to worry, Hodgkinson had another gear or two and before anyone could try to run her down she just mounted and ran away from the field. After Olympic silver, two world silvers and a Commonwealth silver, Hodgkinson picked the perfect moment to strike gold on the biggest stage of all.

Toby Roberts

After sitting third after the boulder resection in this men’s Olympic sport climbing final, the equation was thus for Toby Roberts in his preferred lead section: 77 points to overtake Austria’s Jakob Schubert to reach the top, 74 for second place. When he fell off the wall, he had 92.1.

The assumption was that 17-year-old prodigy Sorato Anraku of Japan would score the 86 points he needed for gold and Roberts would take a well-deserved silver, but just as he approached the decisive spot on the wall, Anraku lost his grip, let it slide and Roberts got a glittering gold.

Tom Pidcock

One of the most entertaining final laps of any race, Tom Pidcock won gold in Paris thanks to perhaps the most daring move of his career. Three years after winning gold in Tokyo, Pidcock turned up at Elancourt Hill as favorite to retain his title. And yet, when his front tire punctured at the end of the third lap of eight, the equation suddenly changed.

France’s Victor Koretzky began to build a lead and Pidcock had to bury himself to stay in the medal chase and get back into pole position, seizing his chance late on when he darted left past a tree as Koretzky went right and snuck ahead of the home favorite for an unexpected and exciting gold.

Women’s quad

Leaving victory to the last second can provide some of the most memorable moments in a game, and our women’s quadruple scullers proved just that in Paris.

Arguably the best race of the Paris 2024 regatta, Lauren Henry, Hannah Scott, Lola Anderson and Georgie Brayshaw trailed the Netherlands for 1950 metres, possibly more. But at the very last stroke, they somehow found the strength to move in first and claim a sensational gold.

‘Moment to pause’

After receiving the award, Yee told TeamGB.com: “It’s really special to be named the most iconic moment of the Olympics.

“It makes me feel really proud of the moment and it’s special that people thought of that moment as something that inspired them to take the next step in their sporting endeavours.

“I didn’t really take a lot of time to look back at one moment specifically, I was so quick on the next thing.

“It hasn’t been until now that I’ve had the moment to stop and appreciate the crazy moment that happened!

“It was amazing to have that moment and for people to have loved it so much.”

Potential impact on SPOTY?

The BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award will no doubt highlight the amazing achievements at the Olympics and Paralympics.

A shortlist of six will be announced in December ahead of a public vote on the night of the live broadcast on Sunday 15 December.

The bookies’ strong favorite at this stage is Hodgkinson, who won the SJA Sportswoman of the Year.

Young darts sensation Luke Littler is next, followed by road cycling legend Mark Cavendish, who won a record 35th stage of the Tour de France this summer in his final year in the sport.

Yee is available at as big as 100/1 in places, but those odds are sure to drop after two awards in two days – and now the other SJA award winner eclipses Hodgkinson in a public poll.

The closest triathlon has come to winning the SPOTY came in 2016 when the recently retired Alistair Brownlee finished second to tennis superstar Andy Murray, both of whom had retained their Olympic titles in Rio.