Hayden Wilde confirmed that he has lodged a formal protest about the penalty which ended his bid for gold in Friday’s Commonwealth Games triathlon in Birmingham.
The 24-year-old New Zealander though has also moved to clarify that he is not looking to overturning Alex Yee’s stunning victory in the showpiece event. Instead he wants the penalty overturned and both men to receive gold medals.
Yee had joined Wilde at the front of the race heading into the closing stages when the news came through that Hayden had received a 10-second time penalty for unclipping his bike helmet too early in T2.
Wilde on Commonwealth appeal
Immediately after the race Wilde described the penalty as “debatable”, and said he would be appealing. Later, writing in an Instagram post, he provided the specifics.
He said: “And just to be really clear…I have lodged a formal protest over the pretty “questionable” 10s penalty I got today – I’m NOT appealing Alex’s win by any stretch the mans performance was top class!!
“my team and I suggested to World Triathlon the penalty should be overturned and both Alex and I given 2 golds reason for this is once I knew I had the penalty to serve – it definitely influenced my run strategy. Anyway, we have 30 days to appeal.”
Hayden thanks Brum crowd
Wilde, who was again full of praise for his conqueror Yee as their epic rivalry continues to blossom, also thanked the huge crowd for their support in Birmingham.
“Finally, a big thanks to all the support and fans at the venue and on the course today. Really great energy….even if most of it was for the local British blokes! I saw a few kiwi flags out there in the sea of red and white 😂😉”
Triathlon’s mid-season report card: Tim Don on who’s raising the bar this triathlon race season
