Britain's Brownlee leads the field of atheletes during the ITU World Championships series race in Kitzbuehel
Led by the Brownlee brothers, Britain has become an elite triathlon nation, deep in talent and poised to end its Olympic drought. The country has not won an Olympic medal in the sport since it was added to the Games in 2000.
Alistair Brownlee, who was born in Yorkshire on April 23, 1988, is the reigning world and European champion. He beat his brother Jonathan, who is two years younger, for his second world title, in Beijing in 2011. Brownlee, who considers his strength to be the running leg, also won in 2009. At the Beijing Olympics in 2008, Brownlee led before fading to 12th.
The Olympic event at Hyde Park will consist of a 1,500-meter swim, a 40-kilometer bike ride and a 10-kilometer run. Last year, at a test event, Brownlee won with a time that was a minute and a half faster than the 2008 gold medal effort by Jan Frodeno.
Brownlee entered Cambridge with the intention of following his parents, who are both doctors, into medicine but instead became consumed by the triathlon. He started out as a cross-country runner and was introduced to the triathlon by an uncle who competed in the sport.
Brownlee’s preparation for the London Games has included sleeping in an altitude tent. He experienced a setback in February when he tore his Achilles’ heel. He wore a protective boot on his injured left foot for a month before resuming light training.
In an interview in December with The Guardian, Brownlee was asked about the odds of both brothers gracing the Olympic award podium. “In triathlon, there’s a 50 percent chance of something going wrong,” he said. “So I’d say there is a one in four chance of it happening for both of us. The odds stack up.” -- KAREN CROUSE
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