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Stimpson wins first gold medal of Glasgow 2014 Games

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Jodie Stimpson won the first gold medal of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth with a fantastic display at the triathlon in Strathclyde Park. Vicky Holland won a brilliant bronze medal to ensure Team England got off to a flying start on the first day of competition in Glasgow.

Lucy Hall exited the water first following the 1500m swim. She was closely followed by Holland and Stimpson. A small group of athletes, including Australia’s Emma Jackson, Canada’s Kirsten Sweetland and New Zealand’s Andrea Hewitt managed to get away and stay away on the hilly 40km bike course.

Hall made a break on the fourth of five laps but her efforts came to nothing when the group reeled her in before the final transition. Stimpson always looked strong on the 10km run, as did Holland.

The final stages saw a battle between Stimpson, Sweetland and Holland, with those three clearly on course to win the three medals on offer. Holland was the first to drop back and Stimpson tried more than once to kick away from Sweetland.

The Canadian provided strong opposition but Stimpson was too determined in the end, even accelerating into the finish to cross the line with her arms held high.

An overwhelmed Stimpson said: “I’ve got to thank so many people for this, they really got me through, it’s awesome. And to share the podium with Vicky, that’s really special. This is not just my medal, this is so many people’s medal.

Commentating on the crowd, she added: “It didn’t matter what country anyone was from, the crowd was just fantastic. It was jam packed with people, it was fantastic.”

Vicky Holland, was equally elated with her bronze medal: "I'm a bit overwhelmed. I said before the race that I was looking to make the top five and edging onto the podium was the very best I could hope for.
 
"This is the best thing I've achieved. Qualifying for the Olympics was a huge deal for me and I'll always be able to call myself an Olympian and treasure that. But this is my biggest ever result, especially with Jodie getting the gold as well.
 
"It feels very poetic to win the first medals of the Games. You dream about this, about getting on the podium and to get a medal with Jodie makes it even more fantastic."
 
James Taylor, Team England triathlon team manager commenting on the two performances concluded: "Jodie is an absolute legend. She's one of the hardest girls out there and she wanted it more than anyone else. Winning the first medal of the Games makes it even sweeter too.
 
"It was a fantastic result by Vicky too and to come out with two medals is the best we could have asked for."
 
Lucy Hall finished in 11th place overall.
 

Results

1. Jodie Stimpson, ENG
2. Kirsten Sweetland, CAN
3. Vicky Holland, ENG

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