Paris paratriathlon: Gold for Dave Ellis as Tokyo woes a distant memory

Dave Ellis and Luke Pollard made the Paralympics in Paris a race to be remembered – and this time for all the right reasons.

The favourites heading into the event, the pair had seen their dreams shattered in Tokyo when a snapped chain at the start of the bike leg had ended their chances.

This time it was very different and after flying through the swim in the Seine and staying in contention on the bike leg, they struck out on the 5km run to take gold.

“Not even finishing the race [in Japan] would be a pretty terrible way to end a career,” Ellis, a six-time world champion, reflected on his decision to continue after the Tokyo disappointment. “And I also felt like I’d only just started. The category wasn’t included in Rio and the sport’s still getting going.

That increase in competitiveness was reflected in the event, with four teams leaving the second transition together before France’s Thibaut Rigaudeau and Antoine Perel held off young US hope Owen Cravens to claim the remaining two podium places.

“After one lap of the bike, I was like: ‘We’ve made it further [than last time]!” Ellis added. “It was a long time coming, but I’m so happy with what we did on the day.”

“A number of dead turns and corners sapped the legs and really hammered the body, but everyone was in the same boat.

“We were working as hard as we could, making sure we stayed in touch with the Americans when they came past us on the bike to be in a good position for the run.”

As for defending the title in Los Angeles – Ellis would be 42 by then – the pair were upbeat about the prospects: “I think so. If I’m still competitive, then definitely, and I should hopefully be [competitive].

A happy and relieved guide, Pollard, added: “He’s probably the hardest working bloke I know and it’s a pleasure to work with him. It’s what gets me up everyday in the winter in the freezing cold and I just feed off his energy.”

The pair’s gold contributed to a five medal haul from ParalympicsGB, its best return since the sport was introduced to the Games in 2016. Megan Richter (PTS4) also topped the podium, with Ellis’ partner Claire Cashmore (PTS5) winning silver and Lauren Steadman (PTS5) and Hannah Moore (PTS4) bronze.

Tim Heming Freelance triathlon journalist

About

Experienced sportswriter and journalist, Tim is a specialist in endurance sport and has been filing features for 220 for a decade. Since 2014 he has also written a monthly column tackling the divisive issues in swim, bike and run from doping to governance, Olympic selection to pro prize money and more. Over this time he has interviewed hundreds of paratriathletes and triathletes from those starting out in the sport with inspiring tales to share to multiple Olympic gold medal winners explaining how they achieved their success. As well as contributing to 220, Tim has written on triathlon for publications throughout the world, including The Times, The Telegraph and the tabloid press in the UK.